


An Angel's Vengeance

by coockie8



Series: An Angel's Cruelty [2]
Category: Hazbin Hotel (Web Series)
Genre: Abuse, Abusive Parents, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Blackmail, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Canon-Typical Violence, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping, M/M, Masochism, Mutilation, Non-Human Genitalia, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Overstimulation, Parent/Child Incest, Past Abuse, Past Sexual Abuse, Prostate Massage, Revenge, Rimming, Sadism, Sequel, Stalking, Suicide Attempt, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:36:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 27
Words: 38,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24031399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coockie8/pseuds/coockie8
Summary: It's been five years since the Angel; Ahkazriel, attacked and tortured Alastor during an extermination. The cruel creature returns, having miraculously survived its wounds, and its back with quite the vengeance.
Relationships: Alastor/Husk (Hazbin Hotel), Arackniss/Henroin (Hazbin Hotel), Valentino/Vox (Hazbin Hotel)
Series: An Angel's Cruelty [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1738693
Comments: 121
Kudos: 437





	1. 5 years

**Author's Note:**

> I'm back! 
> 
> Just to let you know, this fic will obviously be violent and there will definitely be rape in it.
> 
> Also, this fic will jump between Husk's, Alastor's, Vox', Valentino's, and Ahkazriel's points of view. I'll let you know in the note at the beginning of each chapter whose it is, but it will probably be obvious. Hope you like it.
> 
> This fic is a sequel to An Angel's Sentence.

It took five years for Alastor to get relatively back to his old self. It was great. Husk was happy for him. Their relationship hadn't really developed much beyond a seemingly mutual infatuation, but Husk was fine with that. So long as Alastor was happy, Husk was happy.

But after five years of helping Alastor pick up the pieces of his shattered mind and heart, Husk had sort of forgotten what a pain Alastor could be. The irritating things he did when he was at full power and full confidence. Like pulling Husk out of nowhere to help with a ludicrous hotel for rehabilitating sinners.

Husk thought it was the stupidest thing he'd ever heard of, and as far as he was concerned, if the people of Hell were at all interested in redemption, they'd figure it out on their own. They didn't need a misplaced Disney princess to hold their hand. But Alastor found the whole thing to be a riot, so Husk would help. Reluctantly, and he didn't really have any interest in redemption, but he'd help.

Husk supposed any interest he may have had in redemption had gone out the window when he realized it was a mere pipe dream now for Alastor. One of the many consequences of killing an Angel, even if it was self defense. It was like God expected the demons in Hell to just roll over and accept extermination. 

"What are you thinking about, my dear?" Alastor teased as he approached. 

Husk downed more booze and shrugged

"Nothin'," He lied.

It wasn't healthy, by a long shot, but Alastor coped by just ignoring his problems. Crumpling them down into a little ball inside him and never talking about them. Husk, who regularly drank more than his body weight, was in no position to be harping on Alastor over healthy coping mechanisms.

Alastor twirled his mic in one hand before quickly looking around to check if they were alone.

"I need to speak with you. In private," He stated.

Well that was never good. Husk frowned

"What is it?" He asked.

Alastor shook his head and beckoned for Husk to follow before walking away. Husk dragged his body off his chair behind the bar and groaned before lumbering after Alastor. 

He yelped softly as he was yanked into a broom closet. The door closed, leaving them alone in a tight, dark room, illuminated by nothing but Alastor's glowing eyes. Husk cleared his throat as the inside of his ears darkened in colour. Alastor glanced at them and giggled softly

"You're blushing, my dear," He cooed.

Husk scoffed and crossed his arms

"You just dragged me into a broom closet. That tends to have certain connotations," He grumbled "Now what do you want?"

Alastor started to slowly unbutton his coat and Husk scrambled to stop him

"E-Explain?" He stammered, groin tingling at the thought of doing Alastor in a closet, when  _ anyone  _ could walk in.

Alastor swatted Husk's hands away

"Get your mind out of the gutter," He scolded.

Husk averted his gaze and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. Alastor shed his coat and hiked his shirt up to expose the handprint scar. It was glowing. And sizzling, like bacon.

"It  _ hurts _ ," Alastor whined "It hasn't hurt in five years."

Husk frowned in concern and knelt down to get a closer look. He'd never been happier about his form, the dark of the room didn't hinder his vision, being a cat and all

"What the Hell?" He scoffed "Why's it acting up all of a sudden?"

He halted when Alastor started to tremble and he quickly stood

"Hey, hey," He soothed "It's gonna be okay. It's probably nothing."

Alastor took a deep breath and nodded

"You're probably right, I just… I wanted your opinion," He hummed.

Husk pulled Alastor into a hug and nuzzled his cheek. Alastor clung to Husk and took a few more deep breaths before pulling away

"I'll look into it. Talk to Rosie, maybe she knows something," He stated as he tucked his shirt back into his pants and picked up his jacket.

Husk nodded, opening the door for Alastor before following him out

"I still think it's probably nothing. You've been using a lot of magic lately, it's probably just that you're a bit tired," He suggested.

"Oooh," Angel Dust cooed suggestively as he walked by "What were you two doing?"

Husk snarled softly at him as he made his way down the hall. Alastor paid the comment no mind

"You're likely right, but still. I want to be sure. I may need to take a few days, please don't tell anyone why," He pleaded softly.

Husk nodded and quickly pecked Alastor's cheek

"I won't say anything," He assured.

Alastor scratched behind Husk's ears before heading off. Husk tried to follow the touch as it pulled away and stumbled a bit. He quickly looked around to make sure nobody saw him before slipping back to the bar.

By the end of the day, Husk realized Alastor had slipped out early. If he'd known Alastor intended to take off right away, he'd have gone for more than a quick cheek kiss. Oh well. He stared longingly at his radio behind the bar before setting his tail on it

"Hey, Al. Can ya hear me?"

It was silent for a moment before static spilled through the speakers

" _ Indeed I can, my dear! _ " Alastor laughed " _ Miss me already? I haven't been gone that long. _ "

Husk scoffed and blushed deeply

"Where are you, and am I still allowed to stop by, or did you want to be left alone?" He grumbled.

" _ I'm at home, and I don't see why not, provided you don't distract me too much, _ " Alastor teased.

Husk let a smirk slip

"Okay. I'm gonna stop by after work then, I wanted to ask you for something before you took off, but you left so soon, I didn't get a chance," He stated; he was gonna get that kiss, he wasn't asking for much!

" _ Alright. See you soon, dear. _ "

The static went dead and Husk knew Alastor had 'gone offline' in a sense.

Husk swiped a bottle of expensive brandy from the bar before heading over to Alastor's place after work. The sad, hopeless romantic side of him had wanted to get him flowers, but he forced himself not to. They weren't a couple. They would probably never be a couple. They were just very close friends who sometimes cuddled and made out a bit.

He knocked on the door and smirked when it opened. Alastor grinned and beckoned Husk inside

"I've been doing some reading and I spoke with Rosie. She's getting in touch with her contacts and so on," He babbled.

Husk followed after Alastor to his living room

"I brought you booze. Just in case you need it," He informed, putting the bottle down on the coffee table, gently running his hand along the old radio.

Alastor twitched when Husk touched it and looked over his shoulder

"I'm right here, darling," He teased.

Husk chuckled and approached him, wrapping his arms around his waist

"I know," He purred before pulling Alastor into a kiss.

Alastor stiffened for a moment before relaxing and returning the kiss. He slowly pulled away and giggled

"Oh, I see how it is. You didn't get enough earlier," He teased.

Husk chuckled and nuzzled Alastor's nose

"I don't want to distract you, so I figured I'd give you some space, but… I wanted a little more than a peck on the cheek," He admitted.

Alastor laughed and reached up to scratch behind Husk's ears

"You don't have to completely avoid me. We can still spend time together, I'll just be a bit busier than usual," He assured.

Husk eased Alastor over to the couch and helped him sit down

"I know, I just… Wanted to kiss you. Is that a crime?" He muttered.

Alastor shifted closer and kissed him deeply, wrapping his arms around his neck. Husk eagerly returned it, pulling Alastor into his lap. This was probably the most heated they'd gotten in five years. Alastor reluctantly broke the kiss and just stared down at Husk, giggling breathlessly

"Happy?" He cooed.

Husk just gave him a dopey grin and nodded

"Could be happier, but yeah," He joked.

Alastor laughed before turning around and getting comfortable in Husk's lap before picking up his book off the coffee table, conjuring two glasses with a wave of his hand. Husk opened the bottle of brandy and poured some into the glasses before shifting to get more comfortable, wrapping an arm loosely around Alastor's waist and nuzzling the crook of his neck. He felt content.


	2. Vendetta

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is in Valentino's POV.
> 
> Also, Ahkazriel has a much larger role in this fic, so let me know if the zalgo text is too hard to read, and I'll drop the effect :)

Valentino found himself having mixed feelings where this new hotel was concerned. On one hand, he'd lost his biggest star to it, on the other hand, Alastor finally had something to occupy his time which meant Valentino might finally get some peace and quiet.

Alastor spent a lot of time during the past five years making Valentino's life difficult. Hell, the fact he was so interested in the hotel, where Angel Dust was taking refuge, could've been just another ploy for revenge as far as Valentino was concerned.

Movement to his left that made discomfort claw up his spine pulled him from his thoughts. He took a drag from his cigarette and looked around

"Hello?" He called "I'm in a bad mood, so you might want to rethink any funny business."

" **Y̸o̶u̶ ̸a̶r̵e̵ ̴V̶a̷l̵e̵n̶t̶i̵n̶o̸,̴ ̴c̸o̷r̵r̵e̶c̴t̶?̷** " A deep, monotone, glitchy voice questioned.

Valentino snorted a laugh

"Vox? Is that you? Is your face all jacked up again? You sound weird," He teased.

He didn't have time to react before he was slammed into a wall, an absolutely  _ furious  _ angel snarling down at him, its scraggly wings flaring out behind it. Half its face was missing, left behind by nothing more than a gaping hole

" **A̴f̴t̶e̸r̴ ̵b̴e̴i̶n̶g̶ ̸f̶o̸r̵c̴e̸d̷ ̵t̶o̸ ̵t̷a̶k̶e̶ ̵f̶i̵v̶e̷ ̴y̸e̷a̶r̵s̸ ̵t̷o̴ ̴l̸i̵c̷k̷ ̴m̵y̷ ̷w̸o̷u̴n̵d̷s̴,̷ ̴I̴'̵v̷e̷ ̶b̸e̷e̴n̷ ̸l̷e̷t̴t̵i̴n̶g̸ ̷m̸y̵ ̵h̶a̸t̵r̶e̵d̷ ̷a̵n̵d̴ ̷f̸u̶r̸y̸ ̷c̵o̵n̵s̷u̵m̶e̷ ̷m̷e̸.̵ ̸N̵o̵w̵,̸ ̶I̸ ̸b̷e̵l̸i̵e̴v̴e̴,̸ ̸i̴t̴'̷s̴ ̵t̴i̵m̸e̷ ̴t̵o̷ ̴m̸a̷k̵e̶ ̶t̸h̵i̶n̷g̶s̸ ̶r̷i̵g̶h̶t̷,̸ ̸m̷y̶ ̴p̶r̶e̵t̵t̸y̴,̵ ̴l̶i̴t̸t̶l̵e̴ ̵m̴o̷t̷h̴,̴** " It hissed, voice cracking and glitching under its rage.

Valentino's eyes widened in horror as it clicked exactly who this monster was

"A-Ahkazriel?" He stammered.

Its hand around his throat was making his skin burn. He needed to get away, because this thing clearly meant business. Although Valentino couldn't even begin to guess why it had a problem with him. He wasn't the one who blew its face off.

" **O̴h̷?̴ ̴Y̷o̴u̷ ̵k̶n̸o̵w̵ ̴m̴e̴?̵** " It sneered.

Valentino swallowed thickly

"Not personally," He huffed "Why are you coming after me? I didn't blow your face up!"

Ahkazriel narrowed its good eye

" **A̴n̵ ̴u̴n̶f̸o̴r̷t̸u̴n̵a̸t̷e̷ ̶f̴o̷r̵c̶e̸d̶ ̴c̷o̵n̸n̸e̶c̸t̶i̴o̷n̶ ̷c̷a̷u̸s̷e̴d̶ ̶m̶e̷ ̶t̸o̷ ̴b̶e̵ ̴a̸t̸ ̴t̶h̸e̸ ̷m̸e̶r̸c̷y̴ ̸o̷f̷ ̴t̷h̵e̵ ̶t̴o̵r̶t̶u̴r̶e̵s̷ ̷y̵o̷u̷ ̶i̴n̸f̸l̶i̵c̷t̵e̶d̶ ̸u̵p̴o̵n̸ ̶m̸y̵ ̶l̵o̵v̴e̷l̴y̸ ̴R̶a̵d̷i̵o̸ ̴D̴e̵m̶o̶n̴.̷ ̶F̴o̶r̶ ̶t̷h̵a̵t̶,̸ ̷I̴ ̵w̸i̷l̴l̵ ̶r̷e̵t̴u̵r̸n̸ ̷t̶h̶e̷ ̴f̸a̸v̸o̷u̵r̷,̴ ̴a̸n̶d̴ ̴m̶a̴k̷e̷ ̵y̷o̵u̷ ̴s̴u̴f̷f̵e̵r̴ ̶a̷s̸ ̵y̴o̷u̵ ̶m̴a̷d̵e̶ ̵m̴e̵.̷** "

Valentino paled and his breath hitched

"I c-couldn't have known that! I promise that if I had, I  _ never  _ would have hurt him! C-C'mon!" He pleaded, fear and dread quickly setting in.

Ahkazriel tilted its head slightly but said nothing. Still, it was clear, it didn't care about his intentions. It tightened its grip around Valentino's throat, burning the skin. Valentino dug his pistol out of his coat and fired a shot off at Ahkazriel, who immediately dropped him and jerked away. Valentino landed square on his feet and bolted off running.

He didn't know the exact details of what Alastor had been through, but he'd said that Ahkazriel's tortures had made Hell look like a sad joke. Well Valentino was content not learning what that meant first hand.

It was gaining on him, he could hear its wings flapping. He scrambled to pull his coat off, spread his wings and took off. Valentino dove into his studio through an open window and quickly slammed it closed, panting heavily.

"Vee?" One of his whores worried as she approached.

Valentino stumbled back and fell just as Ahkazriel slammed into the window. Valentino kept his studio warded against Angel's, so he had a place to hide during the exterminations, so he knew he was safe.

" **Y̵o̸u̴ ̴c̸a̷n̴'̵t̸ ̴h̵i̸d̸e̴ ̵i̶n̴ ̶t̵h̴e̷r̶e̸ ̴f̸o̴r̴e̷v̶e̵r̷,̸ ̸m̶y̷ ̵s̶w̵e̴e̵t̷ ̵m̶o̶t̴h̸.̷ ̴Y̵o̷u̶'̴l̶l̷ ̴h̵a̵v̶e̸ ̶t̵o̵ ̷v̷e̸n̸t̶u̵r̴e̴ ̴o̴u̶t̴ ̷e̷v̶e̵n̸t̷u̷a̸l̶l̸y̴,̵ ̵a̸n̵d̷ ̶I̶'̸l̷l̴ ̴b̸e̵ ̸w̶a̶i̵t̶i̶n̶g̷ ̴w̷h̸e̷n̸ ̸y̵o̸u̴ ̸d̷o̴.̸** " With that, Ahkazriel took off.

Valentino swallowed thickly, two girls at his side immediately, fretting over him. The sweet pet names were the most ominous thing Valentino had ever experienced. 

"Are you okay, Big Vee?" One of the girls sputtered.

The other clung to him, hiding her face in his neck

"I-It's not an extermination! Why is that thing here!?" She sniffled.

Valentino absentmindedly patted her back to sooth her

"Apparently it has a personal vendetta. But don't worry, sweetie, we're safe in here," He assured.

He pushed himself onto shaky legs and fished his phone out of his coat pocket after putting it back on. He tapped the desired contact and chewed his lip as it rang

" _ What's up, Val? _ " Vox answered.

Valentino took a deep breath

"You remember five years ago, when Alastor got attacked by that Throne?" He started.

" _ Uh… Yeah. Kinda hard to forget. You  _ did  _ kidnap him. _ "

Valentino snarled softly at that statement but didn't argue.

"Well it's back and it's after  _ me _ now," He grumbled.

The line was silent for a moment.

" _ That's not fucking possible. Al killed that thing! _ " Vox spat.

Valentino snarled aggressively

"Well it just tried to do… Fuck… I don't even know what! But it came after me, so it's not fucking dead!" He screamed, his girls scrambling away to escape his wrath.

" _ Okay! Okay… I believe you. I'll be right there. _ "

Cold panic shot through Valentino 

"No! Don't come here! It's still outside somewhere and I don't want you to get hurt!" He sputtered.

It went quiet again for a moment

" _ Aww… Didn't know you cared so much, _ " Vox teased.

Valentino just rolled his eyes and scoffed

"I don't, you're just useful and I don't want to lose that convenience," He drawled.

" _ Whatever. I'm coming by. I'll be fine _ ."

With that, the line cut out. Valentino cursed and turned on his heel, heading down to the lobby to wait for Vox.

"Is everything alright, sir?" The secretary worried after an hour of Valentino pacing back and forth.

He halted and turned a dangerous glare on the secretary, causing her to cower under the look. The entrance of the studio opened and Vox sauntered in. Valentino had him pinned against the wall in a heartbeat, frantically looking him over

"Are you okay!? Did it hurt you!?" He panicked.

Vox blushed deeply

"H-Hey, take it easy. I'm fine," He chuckled sheepishly. 

Valentino let out a sigh of relief before smacking Vox upside the back of his screen

"You stupid piece of shit! I told you not to fucking come here! Don't you ever fucking listen!?" He snapped.

Vox winced as his face went fuzzy

"Take it easy with the merchandise," He huffed "And there ain't no Angel out there. Are you sure you're not just stoned?"

Valentino snarled

"Ask Liza, she saw it too," He huffed.

Vox's expression fell and he rubbed the back of his neck

"Okay, okay," He muttered "I believe you… Should we tell Alastor?"

Valentino beckoned for Vox to follow him and he headed up to the penthouse.

Vox flopped down on the couch as soon as they entered the penthouse

"So… Alastor?" He pushed.

Valentino crawled right into Vox's lap and shed his coat, tilting his chin up to show off his scalded throat

"It's not after Alastor. It's after me!" He snapped.

Vox gently cradled Valentino's jaw to get a better look at the burns

"Jesus Christ," He cursed.

Valentino leaned into Vox's touch and sighed softly

"Get your mind off the fucking deer, and focus on the real problem," He scolded.

Vox nodded

"We gotta patch you up. Stay," He sighed while easing Valentino off his lap "You're okay?"

Valentino nodded

"They're just surface burns," He assured "Hurts like Hell, but I'm not weakened."

Vox wrapped his arms around Valentino's waist

"Think they'll heal, or do you need blood?" He asked.

Valentino smirked before nipping at Vox's neck

"I could always use a pick me up," He purred.

Vox tilted his head back and snickered

"Not mine, Val," He drawled "But we could get you some 'take out'."

Valentino shrugged as Vox headed into the bathroom

"Maybe… We'll wait, right not it doesn't feel like it's gonna be a problem. If they aren't healed by tomorrow I'll drain one of my girls or something. Hope that works. But if they aren't enough, I'm gonna need you or Velvet," He grumbled.

Vox returned with bandages and sat down next to Valentino again, leaning forward to patch him up

"Talk to Velvet. I don't give my blood anymore," He stated firmly.

Valentino lowered his gaze slightly. He didn't know why, but Vox had been majorly messed up after giving Alastor his blood. It irked Valentino to no end that Vox wouldn't talk to him about it. He took Vox's hands once he'd finished bandaging his wounds

"You realize you can't leave now, right?" He urged "Coming here was dangerous enough, that thing could still attack you when you try to leave."

Vox stood and approached a window, looking around outside as much as he could

"I don't see anything. Maybe it left?" He suggested "I'm sure you're not the only person it's here to hurt."

Valentino sprawled out on his couch and scoffed, trailing his fingers over the scar on his shoulder from where Alastor had drained him dry.

"Well excuse me if I don't feel particularly bad about Alastor going for round two with that thing. As far as I'm concerned, he deserves it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's Ahkazriel, with Alastor for height comparison (Assuming Al is 7'0):  
> [](https://ibb.co/3TbFs7W)


	3. Watchful Eye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is in Ahkazriel's POV.

The stale air of Hell made Ahkazriel's scars throb. Admittedly, if it had been just the hole in his face, he wouldn't care all that much, but the injuries he'd sustained went far beyond a flesh wound.

The magnitude of power this  _ Radio Demon _ had exuded destroyed more than just Ahkazriel's beautiful face. Taking such a hit from a demon had led God to demote him. Taking a pair of his wings. So not only was Ahkazriel mutilated and disfigured, but he'd almost fallen. No longer a Throne, but a mere Power. His face he could live without, his wings and status he could not.

Perhaps presenting God with the heads of three of Hell's most powerful Overlords would do the trick. Convince God to return Ahkazriel's status to him. Maybe earn a promotion to Cherub… Or even Seraph.

Ahkazriel flared his ratty wings as he watched the common cat the Radio Demon insisted on fraternizing with. It was clear there was a bond there, for some reason, and since the Radio Demon had taken all that Ahkazriel cared about, it only seemed fair that he return the favour and wrip the old cat to pieces. He intended to present the Radio Demon with the cat's wings before destroying him. Just to see his face.

Ahkazriel ducked into an alley when a few imps made their way by. It wasn't extermination day, and if Lucifer got wind that a rogue Angel was terrorizing Hell, he might step in. And Ahkazriel didn't have the strength nor the patience to deal with a rebellious fallen Angel.

He let his eyes roam over the hotel the cat seemed to call home. Or at least work. He didn't know what it was nor did he really care. Ahkazriel perked up when a tall spider demon stepped outside, clearly on the phone. He flared his wings and flew up to perch himself on the hotel to eavesdrop.

"Val-... Wait just- Uhg. Val! Slow down!" The demon drawled "I can barely understand you."

The demon made his way around to a barren side of the hotel, hidden away out of view. Ahkazriel followed after him, landing behind him. The demon twitched, clearly aware of Ahkazriel's presence

"Uhg… One sec, Vee, I've got company-" He huffed, lowering the phone and covering it before looking over his shoulder "Can I help-" His cheeky grin fell to horror "-You?"

Ahkazriel looked him over

" **H̷a̶n̷g̶ ̴u̶p̴.̵** "

The demon spun around on his heel to fully face the threat and did as ordered

"Y-Yessir," He sputtered nervously.

Ahkazriel approached, gently pinning the demon to the wall. This particular creature wasn't on Ahkazriel's list, so he felt no need to be aggressive

" **R̵e̵l̷a̶x̸,̵ ̶m̵i̷s̸g̴u̸i̸d̸e̵d̵ ̵c̴h̴i̶l̸d̶,̶ ̶I̴'̶m̷ ̵n̷o̷t̸ ̶g̷o̵i̶n̸g̵ ̶t̶o̵ ̴h̴a̶r̵m̵ ̴y̴o̸u̷.̵ ̸I̸ ̷s̵i̵m̸p̴l̴y̶ ̷h̸a̷v̴e̴ ̴a̸ ̶f̶e̴w̷ ̶q̵u̵e̸s̵t̶i̴o̴n̸s̸,̵** " He assured.

The demon swallowed thickly

"O-Okay. What's up?" He stammered.

Ahkazriel looked him over

" **W̴h̴a̷t̷ ̸c̷a̷n̵ ̶I̶ ̵c̷a̶l̴l̶ ̷y̶o̶u̷?̴** " He asked.

The demon winced and averted his gaze

"Uh… Angel Dust?" He muttered.

Ahkazriel cocked an eyebrow and chuckled

" **A̵ ̸d̴e̴m̸o̶n̵ ̵c̷a̶l̶l̷e̸d̶ ̶'̴A̸n̴g̸e̵l̴'̶?̴ ̸H̴u̴m̵o̵r̵o̶u̵s̴,̵** " He deadpanned " **M̵y̶ ̸q̸u̶e̷s̴t̸i̸o̵n̶s̵ ̵a̷r̷e̷ ̴a̶b̸o̵u̶t̴ ̶t̶h̵e̴ ̷o̶l̸d̷ ̴c̷a̶t̸ ̴y̶o̶u̸ ̴c̷o̴h̸a̶b̷i̸t̴ ̴w̶i̷t̵h̷ ̷i̷n̴ ̵t̸h̸i̸s̷.̴.̴.̸ ̵H̶o̸t̸e̴l̶.̴ ̶C̴a̸n̴ ̸y̸o̵u̷ ̸a̵n̸s̵w̴e̶r̸ ̵t̷h̸e̷m̶?̸** "

Angel Dust shrugged a bit

"I'll do my best, but I haven't known Husk that long…" He mumbled "Maybe like a week or two?"

Ahkazriel hummed softly

" **H̴u̸s̶k̴ ̷i̸s̷ ̸i̷t̷?̶ ̷I̵n̵t̶e̵r̷e̴s̷t̶i̴n̷g̸.̷ ̵H̵o̴w̵ ̶p̸o̸w̵e̵r̸f̶u̷l̵ ̷w̴o̷u̵l̴d̴ ̶y̶o̶u̶ ̷s̷a̶y̵ ̴h̵e̵ ̶i̸s̸?̸** " He asked.

Angel Dust frowned

"I don't really know… He's friends with Al though, and according to Vaggie, that's a pretty big deal, so I'd say… Pretty powerful?" He said uneasily.

Ahkazriel narrowed his eye a bit

" **V̷a̷g̴g̷i̷e̵?̴ ̸W̷h̴o̸ ̴i̵s̶ ̴t̶h̷a̸t̵?̶** " He hissed.

Angel Dust started trembling

"Sh-She's the princess' girlfriend?" He stammered nervously, pressing farther back against the wall.

Ahkazriel scoffed, he couldn't reveal himself to someone so close to Lucifer. He clasped his hand around Angel Dust's throat and got in close enough to singe his hair with his holy light

" **T̵e̵l̸l̶ ̸n̴o̷ ̷o̴n̶e̴ ̷t̶h̷a̴t̵ ̴y̴o̷u̵ ̸s̴a̴w̶ ̵m̵e̶.̸ ̶I̴f̷ ̸y̷o̸u̷ ̵d̵o̶.̵.̴.̴ ̴W̷e̶l̸l̷.̷.̵.̷ ̵J̷u̵s̵t̷ ̶a̸s̴k̵ ̵t̸h̵e̷ ̴R̴a̸d̶i̶o̴ ̸D̷e̵m̶o̷n̴ ̵a̵b̷o̴u̶t̷ ̶'Ahkazriel'̷ ̴t̶o̷ ̷f̷i̷n̸d̴ ̸o̴u̷t̵ ̶w̶h̴a̵t̷ ̷I̷'̴l̵l̶ ̸d̷o̸ ̶t̵o̵ ̶y̷o̴u̶,̷** " He warned before taking off.

He had faith that the measly little spider demon known as 'Angel Dust' would keep their interaction to himself, if his pathetic trembling was anything to go by. Still, he'd have to find information about this 'Husk' another way. He needed to know when the old cat was alone for long periods so Ahkazriel could flay him without interruption.

Ahkazriel perched himself out of view in front of a casino. If Husk's playing card theme was anything to go by, he was a gambler. Ahkazriel just hoped he'd picked the right casino, Hell was full of them after all.

Hours passed, well into nighttime, and hiding was becoming difficult. As night descended, Ahkazriel's glow grew brighter. He'd need something to cloak himself. He perked up when Husk approached the casino, chugging from a bottle of some form of alcohol. Ahkazriel dangerously narrowed his eye at the cause of his suffering, trailing alongside Husk, babbling on and on enthusiastically. 

"You can't tell me the mere notion doesn't leave you in stitches, my dear!" The Radio Demon laughed "Redemption! Ha!"

Husk took a drink and shrugged

"It  _ is  _ ridiculous, which is why I don't understand your fascination. But I get free booze, and the opportunity to stare at your cute, little butt all day, so I don't really care," He drawled before heading into the casino, the Radio Demon eagerly following after him.

Ahkazriel snarled softly before glancing over his shoulder at the feeling of demonic aura. A large, crocodile demon growled at him

"The fuck is a thing like you doin' here! It ain't extermination day!" He snapped.

Ahkazriel looked him over; that would make a good cloak to hide his holy light. With ease, Ahkazriel shoved his hand through the demons chest before dragging his lifeless corpse away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahkazriel's chapters are the only ones where the pronouns change from 'it' to 'he'. Because he's a 'him' to himself but a monster to the demons.


	4. Cause

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alastor learns of Ahkazriel's return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A consistent upload schedule? Who's that? I don't know her.
> 
> This chapter is in Alastor's POV

Alastor had seriously underplayed how much pain he was in. The truth was, he didn't want Husk to worry, but he was in so much pain he could barely think. Still, he'd force himself to be okay so Husk would be okay. Even if Alastor was panicking inside.

After joining Husk at a casino, Alastor had to call it an early night and return home when the burning in his side became unbearable. He didn't tell Husk, didn't want to ruin his night.

Alastor sighed heavily as he flopped down on his couch, scrubbing his hands over his face. He lied down and winced, rubbing his side in an attempt to soothe the pain. A shiver ran up his spine and he narrowed his eyes slightly

" _ Oi, Al. Can ya hear me? _ " Vox's voice rang through his head.

Alastor groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose before holding his mic to his mouth

"What do you want, Vox?" He grumbled.

" _ Are you busy? I gotta talk to ya and I don't have much time. Val doesn't want me to tell you, so I'm sorta hiding from him right now. _ "

Alastor cocked an eyebrow

"I'm not doing anything currently, what is it?" He drawled. 

It was silent for a moment.

" _ I… I don't know how to tell ya this, so I'm just gonna say it. Ahkazriel is back. It attacked Valentino, and I'm afraid it's gonna come after you next. _ "

Alastor just lied there on his couch in silence, staring up at his ceiling in horror. Ahkazriel was alive? How the hell was it alive!? He sat bolt upright

"What do you mean it's back!?" He shrieked, emitting horrible feedback and causing the lights in the room to flicker "It can't be back! I killed it! It's supposed to be dead!"

He hadn't had a panic attack in two years, but he was having one now.

" _ It's okay Al, you just have to be careful. I'm pretty sure it's watching Val right now, so you should be safe, but just watch yourself…- Shit. I gotta go. _ "

"Wait!"

…

Alastor slumped when Vox didn't respond and his ears pinned back. He whimpered and covered his mouth. He tightened his grip on his mic with the intent to contact Husk but quickly stopped himself. No need to get Husk involved, no need to make him worry.

Alastor forced himself to relax somewhat, his house was warded against Angel's, so as long as he stayed inside, he'd be fine… Still, why was it going after Valentino? It didn't make sense… He had so many unanswered questions.

He stayed lying on his couch in a daze for who knows how long. What was he supposed to do? Sure he could just teleport everywhere, but that would leave him exhausted very quickly… Alastor shook his head, he shouldn't be worrying so much, he was at full power now, even if he did go up against Ahkazriel again, he knew better this time. He'd kill it this time, no hesitation. 

His front door opened and he scrambled to his feet, eyes flickering as he snarled at his assailant, claws already dug into his palm.

Husk closed the door behind him as he walked in

"Got bored of the casino? One minute I'm crushin' it, next I turn around and you're gone," He grumbled before halting when he saw Alastor's stance.

Alastor quickly relaxed when he saw it was just Husk

"Oh… My dear, it's just you," He sighed in relief.

Husk cocked an eyebrow

"Who the fuck else would just walk into your house?" He drawled.

Alastor averted his gaze

"I just… Received a threatening message, put me a little on edge. Sorry about that," He chuckled sheepishly "I'll try to be less jumpy."

Husk wrapped his arms around Alastor's waist and nuzzled his cheek

"Must've been one fucked up message to get under  _ your _ skin. Want to tell me about it?" He soothed.

Alastor's ears pinned back again and he shook his head

"No, no. It's nothing. Sometimes the most innocuous things can get to us," He assured flippantly. 

Husk shrugged and kissed Alastor's cheek

"You wanna get back to your research?" He suggested. 

Alastor bit his lip, well… At least now he knew the cause of the pain anyway.

"I've decided to drop it. My routine has changed recently, with the hotel, so it's likely the pain is just psychological."

Husk frowned

"That's a pretty big leap, are you sure?" He pushed.

Alastor gritted his teeth and nodded

"Yes. I'm sure. Now please, leave it alone!" He snapped.

Husk flinched and pulled away, ears dropping slightly

"Jeez, fine, ya don't need to fucking yell at me," He grumbled dejectedly. 

Alastor felt his chest clench but he ignored it

"Don't ask stupid questions and I won't have to yell at you," He drawled flippantly.

Husk narrowed his eyes slightly and scoffed

"Okay, ya know what, if you're gonna be a dick, I'm just gonna go," He spat before turning on his heel and heading for the door.

And Alastor almost let him, before white hot panic shot through him and he scrambled to grab Husk's arm

"No! N-No need for that, as I said, I'm just a bit on edge, Minou," He soothed nervously, pulling Husk close "I don't mean to take it out on you."

Husk frowned but, surprisingly, didn't comment. Alastor wrapped his arms around Husk's neck and pulled him into a kiss. He didn't know where Ahkazriel was, and Alastor had no intention of letting Husk go anywhere alone until he'd mounted that monster's head on a pike.

Husk loosely wrapped his arms around Alastor's waist but turned his face away

"Don't do that. Don't try to cover a lie by being sweet with me…"

Alastor winced slightly and averted his gaze

"I'm not lying, my dear. I just don't want to talk about it," He mumbled.

Husk sighed and nuzzled Alastor's neck

"You're fuckin' lucky I love you," He grumbled. 

Alastor's grin widened and he pressed their foreheads together 

"I love you too, Minou."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alastor must protect Husk, but he's not gonna be vulnerable about it.


	5. Stuck Inside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vox and Valentino pass the time while stuck inside the studio hiding from Ahkazriel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back. This chapter is just straight up smut.
> 
> It's also in Vox's POV.
> 
> The typical POV routine will be Husk - Valentino - Ahkazriel - Alastor - Vox  
> It will typically go in that order, but there will be some outliers. So, with that in mind, the next chapter is Husk's POV again.

Vox watched Valentino pace back and forth. He'd managed to sneak away to tell Alastor what was going on, but Valentino seemed to be uneasy letting Vox out of his sight.

"Will you chill, babe?" He drawled "It ain't around, and we're inside the Studio. It can't get you."

Valentino stopped and reached up to cover his mouth with a hand, trembling slightly, eyes wide. Vox winced and stood, pulling Valentino into a hug

"You're a bad bitch, remember. And I'm not gonna let that thing hurt ya. No Throne can take on  _ two  _ Overlords at once," He soothed.

Valentino wrapped his arms around Vox's neck and kissed his screen

"That's why you can't leave. I need you with me to have a fighting chance."

Vox grinned and blushed deeply, letting his heart flutter. Yeah, his and Valentino's relationship wasn't the healthiest thing in the world, but Vox loved him.

"I ain't goin' anywhere, babe," He assured.

Valentino sighed contently and smirked, tugging Vox by the bowtie towards the bedroom

"Now that we've established you won't be going anywhere for awhile, why don't we make the best of our time?" He purred.

Vox was hard in a heartbeat and eagerly followed after his boyfriend.

He didn't waste any time shoving Valentino onto the bed and looming over him. Valentino parted his coat to wrap his impossibly long legs around Vox's waist

"C'mon, Voxxy, distract me," He urged.

Vox squinted an eye and grinned, tugging on Valentino's shorts

"Lift your ass," He snickered.

Valentino rolled his eyes and did as he was told so Vox could strip him. Vox shoved Valentino's shirt up and brushed one of his nipples. Valentino let out a small gasp and relaxed into the pillows

"Mmm," He purred "Pamper me."

Vox chuckled and shook his head fondly

"You gonna keep that stupid coat on the whole time?" He teased.

Valentino shot him a glare

"It is  _ not  _ stupid," He growled before sitting up and shrugging it off, quickly pulling his shirt off all the way and tossing them aside.

Vox leaned back to look over Valentino's body. Valentino smirked and relaxed back against the pillow

"You gonna just admire the view all day, or are you gonna fuck me up?" He purred, spreading his legs.

Vox's gaze immediately dropped to that tight hole, cock twitching in the confines of his slacks

"Hold still," He snickered, fishing his phone out of his pocket.

Valentino cocked an eyebrow and bit his lip as Vox took a picture. Vox couldn't help it, some days Valentino just caught the light really well. He put his phone aside and grabbed the lube before eagerly slicking his fingers up. He kept his gaze trained on Valentino's expression, eagerly recording their exploits, and sunk his middle finger inside. Valentino was clawing at his arms in seconds

"Yes!" He mewled "Just like that!"

Vox shuddered, reaching down with his free hand to free his cock from his slacks

"I'm gonna make ya squeal today," He snickered.

Valentino snorted a disbelieving laugh

"You fucking wish, flat face, I do  _ not  _ squeal," He sneered.

Vox cocked an eyebrow, pressing his finger right against Valentino's prostate and sending a strong shock through him. Valentino went rigid and did exactly what he just claimed he never did. Vox snickered, grin huge

"Sure ya don't," He mocked.

Valentino smacked him in the should and snarled

"Watch it," He warned "I could always feed ya to that damn Angel. It's pissed 'cause I hurt Al, so it's probably not thrilled with the shit you pulled either."

Vox winced and averted his gaze. So that's what it was?

"Why does it care what we did to Al?" He asked, continuing to slowly pump his finger in and out of his favorite hole.

Valentino tensed and pressed down on the feeling

"F-Fuck," He moaned, wings fluttering from the pleasure "S-Said something about a… Connection? Between it and Alastor, said it could feel everything we did to him."

Vox's eyes widened

"Oh, I see," He sighed, pressing a second finger inside.

Valentino whined and spread his legs more

"Will you pick up the fuckin' pace!?" He snapped "I'm not made of fuckin' glass!"

Vox rolled his eyes and plucked Valentino's shades off, tossing them aside as he raised the brightness of his screen. Valentino went rigid and stared intensely at Vox's bright face, completely enamored with it. Vox snickered to himself

"That's right, moth boy, watch the pretty light," He laughed while continuing to pump his fingers.

Valentino narrowed his eyes a bit and whimpered at the feeling, but otherwise kept his eyes locked with Vox's screen. Vox pressed a third finger inside and scissored them before slowly easing them out. He lowered his brightness to give Valentino some freedom and laughed at the look on his face.

" _ Never  _ do that!" Valentino shrieked, smacking Vox upside the screen.

Vox snickered

"Careful, gorgeous, cooperate or I'll do it again," He purred, lining his cock up and slowly sinking inside.

Any retort Valentino had went right out the window at that delicious stretch, and he tilted his head back as he moaned. He dug his claws into Vox's back and clenched around his cock

"Finally," He purred as Vox bottomed out.

Vox just rolled his eyes

"You're so fuckin' impatient," He drawled "Haven't you ever heard of 'savouring'?"

Valentino looked up at Vox, face deeply flushed, brows arched

"Just shut up and fuck me," He urged.

Vox scoffed and gripped Valentino's hips, grinding into him, sending out playful little shocks. He slowly pulled out to about halfway and sunk back in, keeping his gaze trained on their connection. He gently brushed his hand against Valentino's balls before gripping the base of his cock

"You're so fucking perfect today," He purred.

Valentino brushed a heel against Vox's butt

"I'm always perfect, baby," He drawled.

Vox chuckled softly and picked up the pace of his thrusts. Valentino huffed and wrapped his legs around Vox's waist

"Please! Harder, Voxxy," He pleaded "Distract me."

Vox nodded and grabbed Valentino's waist, eagerly pounding into him. Valentino tossed his head back and sobbed

"Yes! Just like that!" He cried "Hurt me!"

Vox grinned, leaning back a bit to quickly shed his clothes. Cables slithered out of the slots on his back and wrapped around Valentino's ankles, wrists, and throat, pinning him to the bed. Valentino snarled softly, not normally a fan of being tied up. Vox tightened the cable around his neck, dropping a hand to his cock to playfully tug on the piercings as he plowed Valentino into the bed.

Valentino's antennae were flicking about wildly and his wings were beginning to flutter. He was close. Vox cursed and squeezed an eye shut

"Cum on my cock, baby," He urged, slipping a cable over to zap his nipples.

Valentino went rigid, the shock so much more intense that probably intended due to the metal of his nipple piercings. It had hurt like hell, and was the perfect thing to pull him over the edge, cumming with a desperate little cry. Vox cursed as Valentino clamped down on his cock, milking him for everything he had.

He planted his hands on the bed beside Valentino's head to stabilize himself, cock still buried as deep as it could go as he emptied his balls. Valentino bit his lip and shivered at Vox's staticy cum

"Good boy," He praised blissfully.

Vox glared at him and slowly pulled out, shocking Valentino's insides as he did. Valentino yelped and desperately squirmed to escape, held still by Vox's cables. Vox's cock popped out with a lewd sound and some of his cum trickled out of Valentino's decently abused hole

"Ain't one a' your whores," He scolded, retracting his cables.

Valentino just lied there, trembling, that final, long shock had been too much for him to handle in his oversensitive state. Vox just snickered and patted his cheek before getting up

"Well, let me know when you can think again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a rest before the next two chapters, one of which will be coming out tomorrow ;)


	6. Stalker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Husk is confronted with a stalker when he steps out for a drink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I said last time, this chapter is in Husk's POV.

Husk glanced down at Alastor, curled up at his side, cooing contently in his sleep. Husk couldn't help but smile as he toyed with the soft, short hairs at the nape of Alastor's neck. He placed a kiss on Alastor's forehead before carefully easing him off and sitting up. He scrubbed a paw over his face and sighed in frustration, Alastor was hiding something, he could tell, but he also knew he'd never get any information forcefully. Alastor was an expert at keeping his mouth proverbially shut.

He stood and made his way out of the room, he needed a drink but knew better than to raid Alastor's liquor cabinet. He'd learned that the hard way. So, he left the house and headed towards the nearest bar.

Something felt off. Like he was being watched. He glanced over his shoulder and snarled softly at the strange looking crocodile demon lumbering along behind him. It was odd, like it's skin was… Sagging. He felt bile rise in his throat when he realized it looked strange because it was a pelt. A fresh pelt, still dripping blood. Someone or something was wearing a, still bloody, demon skin like a fucked up fursuit.

He shuddered and quickly scurried into the bar. He didn't know what this stalker wanted but he didn't want to get skinned and worn like a dress. It wasn't overly strange to wear demon pelts, heck, Husk was pretty sure Valentino's coat was partly demon pelt, but that didn't mean Husk liked to think about it. It was like a human wearing human leather, it was just creepy. And he'd never seen someone wear a pelt like  _ that  _ before.

Luckily, the stalker hadn't followed him into the bar, so he let himself relax a bit. He sat down at the bar and ordered a drink. He couldn't stop worrying about Alastor. He'd been acting so strangely. Husk had to think of a way to get Alastor to tell him what was wrong, without being too on the nose.

It must've been two hours Husk spent, just sitting at the bar, drinking. The music on the radio cut to static and the patrons of the bar stiffened. Husk winced and his ears pinned back. Oh no.

" _ Good evening, sinners! _ " Alastor's voice poured out through the speakers.

Husk turned to look up at a speaker in the far corner, the last he'd seen, Alastor had been passed out in bed, and certainly hadn't seemed in the mood for a Broadcast, so what was this?

" _ I would apologize for disturbing whatever heinous acts you're all getting yourselves up to, but I, frankly, don't really care! _ "

Husk couldn't help but smirk.

" _ In fact, all but one demon out there can feel free to ignore this. _ "

Now  _ that  _ was weird… Husk took a swig from his booze and cocked an eyebrow.

" _... Husker! Wherever you've gone, you need to come back now! _ "

Husk choked on his booze and blushed deeply, a few of the bars patrons, who knew him, turned to looked at him

" _ Here, kitty, kitty! Come home! _ " Alastor cooed.

Husk slammed his bottle down on the bar and snarled, he was gonna kill him. Of all the objectifying,  _ humiliating  _ stunts Alastor had pulled,  _ this  _ took the cake! Husk pinned his ears back and blushed deeper at the little snickers the patrons aimed at him.

" _ Be careful, minou. I'm waiting for you! _ " With that, the music cut back in.

Husk pushed himself to his feet and stormed out of the bar. Alastor was gonna get a piece of Husk's mind. The whole 'treating him like a cat' thing was mostly fine in private, but Husk had made it  _ explicitly  _ clear that he wasn't okay with it in public, and Alastor had just called him 'kitty' and 'minou' on a  _ Hellwide  _ broadcast. 

He turned down the street to Alastor's place and walked straight into a disturbingly mushy chest. He stumbled back a bit and looked up at the guy who'd been stalking him. Husk scowled

"Get the fuck out of my way, I'm not in the fucking mood!" He snapped.

The stalker flinched back slightly, almost like he was shocked someone would speak to him like that. Husk cocked an eyebrow, what was this guy new to Hell or something? He scoffed and moved to push past the stalker, only to have a hand wrap around his throat and drag him into an alley, slamming him into a wall. Husk flared his wings out instinctively so they wouldn't get crushed.

" **D̶o̶ ̷u̸s̵ ̵b̴o̸t̶h̷ ̵a̸ ̶f̵a̷v̵o̵r̸,̶ ̵a̷n̴d̵ ̷d̶o̷n̵'̷t̸ ̵f̴i̴g̵h̴t̶ ̷m̷e̴,** " The stalker hissed.

That voice made prickles of discomfort claw their way up Husk's spine. Like Hell he was just gonna lie down and take this. He flexed his claws and swatted at his attacker, scratching at his face. The attacker released his throat and stumbled back slightly. Husk stumbled slightly before moving to take off only to be stopped by a massive, glowing wing. He jerked back and fell on his ass before crawling away from the wing. Apparently he'd knocked the pelt off.

" **M̶m̸m̶,̶ ̴I̸ ̵l̶i̵k̷e̷ ̴t̷h̴a̸t̸ ̴l̶o̴o̵k̵ ̸i̷n̸ ̶y̷o̷u̷r̵ ̴e̶y̶e̶s̷.̸ ̴S̶u̸c̷h̴ ̶f̴e̷a̸r̷.̶.̴.̴ ̷H̶u̵s̴k̶e̵r̸,̴ ̵r̸i̷g̵h̸t̴?̶** "

Husk went rigid and he just stared up at the Angel, looming ominously over him. His eyes darted to the gaping hole in its head and his blood ran cold

"Ahkazriel…?" He sputtered.

It straightened its posture and flared its wings out, almost like a peacock showing off

" **A̶p̶p̸a̵r̵e̷n̴t̷l̵y̴ ̵I̵'̴m̸ ̸q̶u̴i̷t̶e̷ ̴w̶e̷l̸l̷-̷k̸n̶o̴w̴n̸ ̶a̵r̷o̴u̴n̸d̶ ̴t̵h̵e̵s̷e̸ ̵p̵a̵r̸t̴s̵,̷** " It purred.

Husk swallowed thickly and scrambled back, wincing when his back hit a wall. This thing had taken down Alastor, so Husk knew he didn't stand a chance. He was going to die here, and if Alastor's vague recount of what happened was any consolation, it wouldn't be a pleasant death.

Glowing fabric wrapped around his paws and Husk's fur stood on edge. He swatted at the fabric, tearing it with his claws and hissed. Ahkazriel just cocked an eyebrow

" **W̴h̵y̷ ̸d̷o̵ ̷d̴e̵m̶o̴n̷s̷ ̴a̶l̶w̴a̶y̷s̸ ̸i̸n̸s̸i̷s̵t̵ ̴o̶n̴ ̵d̵o̷i̴n̵g̸ ̶t̶h̶i̵s̷ ̷t̵h̷e̸ ̴h̵a̴r̵d̵ ̶w̵a̸y̵?̶** " It wondered flatly before seductively hooding all its eyes " **̸N̸o̷ ̵m̴a̶t̷t̶e̴r̶.̷ ̴T̶h̸e̷ ̸h̷a̵r̷d̶ ̸w̶a̶y̷ ̶i̴s̶ ̴a̵l̴s̵o̴ ̷t̶h̵e̴ ̵f̵u̶n̵ ̶w̸a̸y̶.̴** "

Husk's eyes widened in horror and his ears pinned back. He pushed himself to his feet and flared his wings out, hissing animalistically, yellow sparks of magic gathering in his palms

"Stay away!" He snarled.

He knew he wasn't much of a spectacle in comparison to Alastor, but he refused to go out in any way but fighting. And hopefully he'd get some damage in on this asshole who'd shattered Alastor into pieces and left Husk to clean up the mess. Ahkazriel flapped its wings, the gust of wind they caused slamming Husk back into the wall

" **P̴l̷e̴a̶s̶e̵,̶ minou,̷ ̵y̴o̵u̵ ̸c̸a̴n̴'̴t̴ ̸w̸i̴n̵.̶ ̴J̵u̵s̵t̸ ̵l̵e̶t̷ ̵m̷e̷ ̵t̴a̷k̵e̶ ̵w̵h̶a̵t̷ ̸I̸ ̷w̴a̷n̴t̷,̸** " It drawled.

Husk stiffened at that word. Minou. Only Alastor called him that. Only Alastor was  _ allowed  _ to call him that. He lunged forward and slashed his claws at Ahkazriel's side, actually landing a hit

"Don't fucking call me that!" He snarled.

Ahkazriel stumbled back, its blood splattering across the pavement, sizzling like water in a hot pan. It backhanded him, sending him flying back into the wall, cracking his head against the brick. He slumped and gritted his teeth together. Fuck. No, no, no! He could  _ not  _ pass out!

His vision blurred and his hand ached from where Ahkazriel's holy blood was burning his flesh. Ahkazriel bared down on him, with the clear intent to kill. Husk narrowed his eyes at the quickly darkening silhouette

"Damn…" He cursed to himself as his world went dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will also be violent, and we're starting to learn more about Ahkazriel.
> 
> It will probably be a while before the next chapter gets posted, because there's art to go with it :)
> 
> You won't get to know if Husk survived or not until Alastor's chapter.


	7. Clipped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Valentino has an unfortunate run-in with Ahkazriel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The picture took far less time to complete than I thought it would.
> 
> This chapter is in Valentino's POV and it's quite violent.

When Valentino finally came to, Vox wasn't in the room anymore. He grumbled under his breath to himself and stood up, wincing at the slight pain in his back before letting a grin slip, a sore back was a sign of fucking well done. He didn't bother clothing himself and cautiously made his way out onto his balcony, phone in hand.

He leaned against the railing and winced when his phone started to ring. He sneered at Angel Dust's number, that little shit had a lot of nerve calling him back after hanging up on him. Well, whatever it was, regardless of urgency, it could wait. He set his phone down on the railing and glanced over his shoulder into the Penthouse at his pack of cigarettes and lighter on a table.

"Vox!?" He called.

No response. Valentino scoffed and headed inside, leaving the balcony door open a bit as he intended to be quick. He grabbed a cigarette and put it between his lips before grabbing his lighter. The balcony door squeaked softly as it was opened, Valentino just rolled his eyes and smirked

"Wanna fuck me over the railing again? That was actually really fun last time," He purred.

When he got no response, he turned to scold Vox for ignoring him, only to go rigid at the sight of Ahkazriel, standing _inside_ his Penthouse, balcony door now completely open. Ahkazriel glanced over its shoulder at the glass doors

" **T̶h̸e̷ ̴w̷a̴r̷d̶s̴ ̶d̸o̵n̴'̴t̷ ̶w̵o̵r̵k̵ ̷i̴f̸ ̸y̸o̴u̵ ̷l̸e̴a̸v̴e̵ ̵a̷ ̸d̸o̷o̶r̵ ̵o̵p̴e̵n̴,̵** " It stated.

The lighter slipped from Valentino's grip and his cigarette tumbled out of his mouth as he stumbled back. Well… This was bad. He was nude, completely unarmed, and alone. In layman's terms, he was screwed. He visibly paled when Ahkazriel picked his pistol up off the bedside table

" **I̸ ̷k̷n̸e̸w̷ ̷t̵h̵e̸ ̵A̶n̶g̸e̷l̵ ̵t̸h̶i̸s̵ ̵b̵e̴l̸o̶n̷g̶e̴d̸ ̷t̷o̶.̶ ̷S̷h̵e̸ ̷w̵a̶s̷ ̶a̷ ̸g̵o̸o̷d̶ ̷s̷o̶l̷d̷i̵e̵r̸,̷** " It commented, almost nostalgically. 

Valentino swallowed thickly and glanced between Ahkazriel and the door. Ahkazriel glanced up

" **I̷ ̴w̴o̷u̵l̷d̸n̴'̶t̵ ̷d̶o̶ ̸t̷h̵a̷t̸,̵ ̷i̴f̶ ̸I̴ ̶w̴e̵r̸e̸ ̸y̸o̴u̶.̴ ̵I̶'̴m̶ ̸i̶n̴ ̸a̸ ̷l̴e̷s̸s̶ ̴t̴h̴a̸n̶ ̷p̴o̶s̵i̴t̶i̸v̸e̸ ̶m̴o̴o̶d̵,̷** " It commented.

Valentino flinched and turned his attention back to Ahkazriel

"C'mon… Why me?" He stammered nervously "I didn't do anything to you!"

Ahkazriel turned completely towards Valentino, all its eyes narrowed dangerously

" **T̸r̷u̶t̷h̷f̶u̴l̷l̵y̴?̵ ̷I̶t̵ ̷w̶a̴s̶ ̵t̴h̴e̵ ̵p̸i̵l̴l̸o̸r̴y̶.̷ ̵I̵ ̸f̵e̸l̷t̸ ̸e̷v̷e̷r̴y̵t̶h̴i̸n̴g̶ ̶d̸o̴n̸e̸ ̸t̵o̷ ̸A̶l̷a̴s̶t̷o̴r̸ ̷d̶u̴r̵i̸n̵g̴ ̶t̵h̶a̷t̴ ̵l̷i̵t̶t̴l̷e̴ ̵s̶t̵u̴n̵t̸ ̷y̸o̵u̷ ̶p̷u̷l̴l̸e̵d̴,̸ ̶a̸n̷d̸ ̴I̷ ̴a̸m̷ ̶n̵o̶t̵ ̶c̶o̶n̸t̷e̶n̵t̸ ̵w̵i̷t̵h̶ ̷b̸e̷i̴n̴g̸ ̷t̵r̶e̸a̵t̸e̶d̷ ̴l̴i̵k̶e̵ ̸a̶ ̵f̴r̶e̴e̷ ̷m̵e̵a̵l̵,̷** " It hissed as it approached.

Valentino stumbled away, knocking the table over in the process and he scurried behind it

"I didn't know! How could I have? Please-" He quickly cut himself off before he begged.

He rubbed his wings together nervously, causing some dust to fall. The shimmery powder caught Ahkazriel's attention briefly and Valentino immediately bolted for the door, clothes be damned. Wasn't like everyone in the studio hadn't already seen him naked at one point or another.

He yanked the door open only to have it immediately slammed in his face. Fuck. He couldn't outrun this thing. Outfly it, sure, but not outrun. His eyes darted to the balcony. He could outfly it! He ducked under Ahkazriel's arm and raced for the balcony.

He put his hands on the railing with the intent to vault over it, only to be grabbed by the ankle

"No!" He shrieked, digging his claws into the stone of the railing.

Not that it deterred Ahkazriel much, who just pulled until Valentino's claws ripped out and he couldn't keep his grip. Ahkazriel slammed him into the ground on his stomach and knelt against his back. Valentino wheezed at the weight and clawed at the floor, spreading his wings out and flapping the aggressively

"Get off!" He screamed "Vox!"

Ahkazriel sneered and grabbed Valentino's wings at the base, pulling, ignoring as Valentino thrashed and screamed in agony, until they tore out with a disgusting ripping sound. Ahkazriel shuddered in a way that could only be described as orgasmic. Valentino slumped, panting heavily, unwilling tears streaming down his face, blood oozing from where his wings had been torn off.

Ahkazriel leaned down and opened its mouth, the sound of the stitches in its lips tearing made Valentino feel nauseous. But the searing hot tongue that traced up his wounds, cauterizing them with holy light, made him screech in agony.

"No! No, no!" He wailed, struggling and fighting to escape "They won't grow back!!"

He _felt_ it smirk against his skin

" **T̸h̸a̵t̶'̷s̵ ̴t̴h̴e̷ ̴p̷o̵i̴n̷t̵,̶ ̸m̶y̸ ̴g̶r̸o̶u̶n̶d̴e̸d̶ ̴l̸i̵t̵t̴l̷e̶ ̵b̴e̷a̷s̵t̵,** " It purred, tilting its hips to press something hot and _hard_ into Valentino's lower back " **N̵o̸w̶ ̵y̴o̶u̸ ̶c̶a̵n̷'̸t̷ ̸e̴s̶c̵a̶p̴e̴ ̷m̴e̶.̴** "

White hot panic shot through Valentino's chest and he sobbed softly, grabbing around for something, _anything,_ that could be used as a weapon. He curled his fingers around an empty liquor bottle and swung it over his shoulder, smashing it against Ahkazriel's face. The damaged part. Ahkazriel jerked back and shrieked, that ear-shattering angelic wail. Valentino curled in on himself a bit to escape the horrible sound before pushing himself to his feet and stumbling towards the door.

" **I̷̧̢̘̐ ̸̢̛̘͉̯͂͝ͅw̵͎̱̅̐͌i̵̦̥̎̒l̵̥͍̂̿ḽ̵͔̫̾͒̌ ̶̪̙͝ͅr̶̯̱̣̒i̷͎̗̓̓̋̇p̵͈̩͛̋ ̸̠̏͆̈́͛̕à̵̧l̵̤͖̲͔̫̇̐̚l̸̯͇̙͓͒̇̅̂ ̷͇͊ȳ̴̠͘͝o̴̙̯̺̞͒̽͝ũ̵͖̩̀̌r̴̘̤͔̅̾͗ ̸̡͇͗l̶̻͖̐̐͊i̴͓̲̰̬̍̔͝m̷̜͐̽͒͝b̷̡̩̮̖̃̚͜š̴̖̳͖̮ ̴̢̻̣̞͚̋̈́̂͒͋ǫ̷̤͔̦̂f̵̨̤͕̺̲̃̈̏̊̆f̷̠̘̻̌͝ ̶̖̏̈́̀̆o̵̡̜̥̣͊͊n̸̛͚͔̽̄̏ẹ̶̝̲̇̈̈̔ ̵̤̥̠̟̄͑͐ḃ̶̺̿̇̀y̷̫͂̄͌̇̂ ̸̧̗̬͛̎̀o̷͚͕̼̦͚͛n̸̢̼͍͖͛̈́͜͠e̷̢̝̜͔̘͌̀̌,̷̧̱͇̳͚̑ ̴̨̧̖̣̘͐̈́̕͝͝ḻ̶͌͌ĭ̶͔͒ķ̶̜̠̱͊̈͐e̵̢̥͓̮͠ ̶̡̘̻͖̏̈́̌ḁ̴̧̔̔̽ ̸͇̣̬̆̇̈́̎̐h̷̪͖̣̞̏͋͊̃̕ͅư̸̗̣̹̤̓͝m̵͙͗̎͐̍̈a̴͍̭͕̭̝̐͋n̴͚͙̹̮͗̀̃͝ ̴̛̟̓̈́͝͝t̷̩̭̱̩͖̓͒o̷̥̐̉͛ ̴͋̂͜ă̶̰͍n̵̻̯̩̫̩̑̓͝ ̶͈͙͍̹̋ą̵̧͓̳̙̈́̄n̴̖̘̮̙̩̄t̶̹̳̍ͅ!̴̨͓̻̺͋̎͌͒** " Ahkazriel roared, the force of its voice shattering the windows.

Valentino couldn't stop himself from buckling and covering his head in a poor attempt to escape the sound. He shook his head and continued for the door. Apparently being yanked off the balcony railing had hurt his leg more than he thought. He pulled the door open and stumbled out into the living room, looking around frantically

"Vox!?" He called "Where the hell are you!?"

He couldn't do this alone, he needed help! He stumbled and quickly scurried behind the couch, hunkering down in fear. He heard Ahkazriel's wings flutter and he whimpered, curling in on himself more. What was he supposed to do!? The door and the elevator were both locked, and he obviously didn't have his keys on him. He was trapped, his only way out ripped from his back. He'd been hoping Vox was just passed out in the living room, but he wasn't. 

A shadow loomed over him and he yelped, curling into a ball, burying his face in his knees, trembling like crazy.

"Val? What happened?" Vox asked.

Valentino let out a shaky breath of relief and scrambled to his feet, throwing himself at Vox, tackling him to the ground.

"Oof," Vox grunted unceremoniously.

Valentino openly sobbed into the crook of his neck and Vox went rigid before awkwardly patting Valentino's back. Two pats and he froze

"Where the fuck are your wings?" He sputtered in confusion, pushing them up so he was sitting, Valentino quickly curling up in his lap.

Valentino didn't respond, just stayed glued to Vox as he unwillingly panicked. Vox wrapped his arms around him and hushed him softly

"Woah, easy," He soothed "I've never seen you like this, babe."

He gently ran his hand over the wounds where Valentino's wings used to be, wincing when Valentino cried out in pain

"Sorry," He mumbled sheepishly.

Valentino sunk his teeth into Vox's shoulder to muffle his scream of frustration. Vox just let him, unsure of what else to do. He'd never been particularly good at this type of shit, so he didn't really know how to help. Valentino slowly pulled away, Vox's staticy blood dripping off his chin, tears streaming down his cheeks

"Where the fuck were you!?" He screamed.

Vox flinched and squeezed his eyes shut. Valentino punched him in the shoulder

"I told you to fucking stay with me!" He shrieked "You didn't and look at what fucking happened!"

Vox opened one eye a bit to glance up at Valentino

"I needed some air, so I took a step outside," He muttered "I wasn't gone _that_ long…"

Valentino hiccupped and covered his face with his hands

"You were supposed to stay with me!" He yelled, voice muffled "You were supposed to stay with me…"

Vox shifted closer to Valentino and gently pulled him into a hug, letting him sob

"I know, Val… I'm sorry," He breathed.

Valentino swatted at him, not that it was particularly threatening, what with his claws having been torn out. He pushed himself to his feet and limped back into the bedroom. He stumbled out onto the balcony and grabbed his phone before scurrying back inside and slamming the door shut. Vox winced at the sight of the balcony and sheepishly averted his gaze as Valentino limped passed him. Valentino halted for a moment and glared at Vox before continuing on his way

"'Stepped out to get some air' my ass."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the scene when Ahkazriel rips out Valentino's wings:  
> [](https://ibb.co/pfdtPJS)
> 
> Hope you liked the chapter


	8. Holy Sadism

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahkazriel expands on his plans after coming into contact with a certain snake demon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is basically just Ahkazriel being a dick for no reason other than it turns him on.

Ahkazriel landed with a soft grunt in a relatively deserted part of the city. He ducked into an alley and snarled under his breath, reaching up to pluck shards of glass out of his face. He couldn't stop thinking about those screams, and the way they made his breeding parts tingle.  _ Valentino _ , a tempter.

Ahkazriel had been  _ so  _ close to making that vermin feel the way he'd felt when Alastor had been in that pillory, but then that  _ other  _ Overlord had returned. Even at full Throne power, Ahkazriel knew better than to try and take on  _ two  _ Overlords. Still, he'd gotten a souvenir out of it. He ran a thumb over the powdery texture of Valentino's wings.

Ahkazriel leaned against the wall of the alley and reached up to split the stitches in his chest, causing a gaping hole to open up in his body. He hissed at the feeling of Hell's tainted air against his most vulnerable parts before shoving Valentino's wings inside and sealing it back up. He liked to keep souvenirs, and intended to keep Alastor's pitiful antlers as such when the time came.

Ahkazriel shifted behind a dumpster when he heard someone enter the alley and narrowed all his eyes at a familiar looking serpent. This one had been there, had used Alastor in the pillory. Perhaps that was something Ahkazriel could do in the meantime time, to gain some extra power… Track down the demons from the pillory incident and slaughter them.

He waited until the serpent was deeper in the alley before coming up behind him and slamming him into the wall

" **D̴o̵n̷'̶t̵ ̸s̶p̶e̷a̵k̶,̴ ̶I̸'̸m̸ ̷n̷o̶t̴ ̵i̵n̵t̴e̵r̷e̸s̵t̸e̷d̶ ̵i̷n̶ ̸a̷n̴y̸t̶h̶i̵n̴g̷ ̸y̵o̷u̸ ̵h̸a̴v̵e̴ ̷t̶o̷ ̵s̸a̵y̸,̴** " He snarled.

The serpent whimpered and sunk against the wall, clearly wanting to plead for his life but knowing better. Ahkazriel smirked

" **G̵o̶o̴d̵ ̶b̸o̷y̵.̶ ̸Y̶o̷u̶ ̷w̸i̵l̵l̸ ̶o̸n̵l̴y̸ ̵s̶p̷e̷a̸k̸ ̵t̴o̷ ̸a̴n̵s̵w̶e̸r̵ ̴m̸y̷ ̴q̷u̵e̸s̵t̸i̸o̷n̸s̶.̶ ̸I̵f̸ ̸y̶o̷u̸ ̴d̴e̸f̶y̴ ̴m̸e̷,̶ ̷I̶'̸l̴l̸ ̵h̴u̶r̴t̸ ̴y̴o̷u̵.̵ ̷A̷r̴e̶ ̴w̵e̵ ̴c̷l̵e̷a̶r̷?̷** " He hissed.

The snake nodded frantically.

" **G̴o̷o̸d̶.̸ ̸W̵h̶a̸t̴ ̵i̷s̷ ̶y̵o̶u̸r̴ ̸n̸a̷m̸e̵?̴** " Ahkazriel wondered disinterestedly.

He didn't actually care all that much, it just seemed like the question to ask.

"S-Sir Pentious," The snake stammered, eyes darting about in search of escape.

Ahkazriel flared his wings out, blocking the rest of the alley, to which Sir Pentious visibly paled.

"I'm sorry!" He sputtered.

Ahkazriel narrowed his eyes, one darting down to the smooth front of Sir Pentious' tail. He dropped a hand and felt up along the scaley thing until he found a thin slit. He roughly sunk a claw into it and Sir Pentious wailed in pain, buckling and grabbing at Ahkazriel's wrist. Ahkazriel shuddered at the scream, his breeding bits tingling again, he so loved to cause demons pain

" **I̸ ̴w̸a̸r̷n̸e̴d̴ ̶y̵o̶u̵ ̴n̷o̷t̸ ̶t̵o̴ ̷s̷p̵e̷a̵k̶ ̶u̵n̷l̴e̶s̸s̵ ̷a̵n̵s̸w̵e̵r̶i̴n̸g̶ ̴a̸ ̴q̴u̸e̷s̶t̷i̸o̸n̶,̸ ̶a̸n̴d̴ ̷I̴ ̸m̴e̷a̶n̸t̵ ̶t̷h̴a̷t̵ ̴s̵p̷e̵c̴i̴f̸i̸c̷a̶l̷l̵y̸,̶** " He snarled.

Sir Pentious looked up at him, visibly trembling and bit his lip to stop himself from pleading for the pain to stop. Ahkazriel shifted the finger and Sir Pentious whimpered, squeezing his eyes shut.

" **I̶'̸m̷ ̴n̶o̷t̵ ̸e̶x̶a̶c̷t̸l̴y̵ ̶a̶n̷ ̶e̷x̴p̴e̶r̵t̶ ̸i̵n̵ ̷s̴e̸r̵p̵e̷n̵t̵i̴n̵e̵ ̸a̸n̶a̶t̶o̶m̸y̵,̴ ̴b̴u̷t̸ ̶I̴ ̵d̷o̴ ̵b̴e̵l̵i̴e̴v̴e̴** **_̶t̵h̵i̷s̶_ ** **̵p̸a̷r̵t̶ ̸o̵f̶ ̷y̸o̷u̶ ̸i̸s̷ ̷w̷h̵e̷r̷e̷ ̸y̷o̴u̴ ̷k̶e̸e̸p̵ ̸y̶o̷u̵r̶ ̴d̴i̴r̸t̵y̶ ̵p̶a̸r̴t̶s̶ ̶h̷i̴d̶d̴e̶n̸,̷ ̸c̷o̷r̸r̴e̵c̶t̵?̶** " He purred.

Sir Pentious nodded

"Y-Yes… Please," He whined, inching his hips away until they pressed back against the wall.

Ahkazriel sneered and curled his claw, digging it into the tender wall of Sir Pentious' slit, which caused him to scream deliciously. 

" **D̴o̶ ̷n̴o̸t̷ ̶s̷p̴e̶a̶k̴ ̶b̵e̶y̵o̸n̷d̷ ̷t̵h̵e̵ ̴a̶n̵s̴w̸e̵r̶,̵** " He warned.

Sir Pentious nodded frantically, tears gathering in his eyes. Ahkazriel took a deep breath before slowly retracting his finger, wiping the blood on Sir Pentious' suit jacket. Sir Pentious took quick, ragged breaths and whimpered as blood trickled down his tail from his slit. Ahkazriel ran his finger up the trickle of blood, gathering it and bringing it to Sir Pentious' lips

" **C̷l̵e̶a̵n̶ ̴y̵o̵u̷r̸ ̷m̴e̵s̶s̵,̷** " He purred.

Sir Pentious stared up at him in disgusted horror. Ahkazriel cocked an eyebrow. Sir Pentious swallowed thickly before reluctantly doing as ordered, gagging slightly at the action. Ahkazriel let a smirk slip, squeezing his legs together as his breeding parts tingled. He'd get hard at this rate. No. Not now, not for  _ this  _ demon. Ahkazriel jerked away and snarled, Sir Pentious quickly cowering against the wall and covering his head

"Don't kill me!" He pleaded.

Ahkazriel scoffed and stepped aside, folding his wings

" **L̶e̵a̵v̴e̴.̴ ̶B̵e̷f̴o̵r̷e̵ ̶I̶ ̵c̴h̵a̷n̶g̷e̶ ̸m̵y̴ ̴m̴i̶n̶d̸,̸** " He grumbled.

Sir Pentious quickly slithered away in fear. Ahkazriel scoffed and spread his wings, taking off into the air.

He landed softly outside that hotel and just watched. Alastor hadn't returned here in some time, and Ahkazriel couldn't figure out why. In fact, he hadn't seen much of the Radio Demon since he'd attacked the old cat. And even then, he didn't  _ see _ him, had simply sensed that darkness and took off. It wasn't ideal, and it was infuriating. He had no idea if the cat was dead or not. He hoped so.

No matter, Alastor had to return eventually. He'd seemed rather invested with this… Sinner rehabilitation hotel? The notion was ridiculous, and, quite frankly, insulting. Ahkazriel felt the need to burn the place to the ground, but he knew better. He'd avoid getting involved with the Princess if he could help it. Fallen Angel or not, Lucifer was still a Seraph.

He glanced up when a tiny demon scurried out of the hotel to frantically clean the outside of the doors. What a strange little beast… A smirk tugged at his lips when Angel Dust approached the tiny thing

"Do you  _ ever  _ get tired?" He teased.

The little thing looked up

"There's dirt on the glass!" She huffed "I have to clean it!"

Angel Dust chuckled and patted her head before glancing around nervously

"It's not a big deal… You should stay inside, Niffty," He urged uneasily.

Ahkazriel cocked an eyebrow, so the spider was trying to protect his friends? Fair enough. Just so long as he kept his mouth shut, Ahkazriel didn't care. Angel Dust flinched when his phone started to ring and he ushered Niffty, was apparently her name, back inside before answering the call

"What's up, Voxxy? Not like you to give me a call," He cooed.

Ahkazriel narrowed his eyes. Vox. That artificial abomination had interrupted his playtime with Valentino. Angel Dust's eyes widened in horror

"Wait, what!?" He shrieked "What are you saying? What do you mean it ripped his wings out!?"

A cruel, sadistic grin split Ahkazriel's features and he couldn't help but snicker. Angel Dust scurried back inside, much to Ahkazriel's disappointment, he'd been hoping to hear more of the conversation. Oh well. He had more important things to do, like hunting down those demons. He'd need to get his strength up if wanted any hope of taking down the Radio Demon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As the story progresses Ahkazriel will become more unhinged, as you can see, it's already starting. 
> 
> Also, Ahkazriel calls his junk 'breeding parts' but the sinners junk 'dirty parts' because the sinners can't breed, so, in Ahkazriel's eyes, the only purpose the sinner's junk holds is to sin.
> 
> Hope you liked the chapter.


	9. Nine Lives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alastor learns what's become of Husk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it. Time to find out if Husk's alive or not.

Alastor carefully sat down on the edge of his bed and reached over to gently pet Husk's head. He couldn't even bring himself to smile. Husk wasn't breathing.

"Please wake up," He whimpered, shifting to lie down next to Husk, curling up to his disturbingly cold body.

It had been a week since he'd found Husk, beaten and dead in an alley, the glowing blood on his claws a dead give away to what had happened. He'd brought Husk home and set him up comfortably in bed. Now he was waiting for him to resurrect. If he even would.

Alastor felt responsible. He should've killed that Angel five years ago when it first attacked him. He shouldn't have hesitated. If he'd just ripped its throat out then, none of this would've happened. He'd never have been weakened, Valentino never would've kidnapped him, he never would've seen exactly what comes after Hell, and Husk never would've gotten hurt.

Alastor hid his face in Husk's fluffy chest and sobbed. This was all supposed to be over. He couldn't do this again, he couldn't go back to being terrified of every shadow in the corner. He needed his Husk.

"Wake up!" He demanded.

Nothing. Alastor sat up and wiped his eyes, gently shaking Husk again

"Please, Husk!" He whimpered "Wake up! I need you…"

He slumped and sighed in defeat before standing to leave the room.

He entered the bathroom and approached his bathtub, leaning over to run a bath. He smelled of decay, likely from spending the past week cuddling a corpse. He, personally, wasn't overly bothered by the smell, but he needed to return to the Hotel. Husk was likely dead permanently, and Alastor needed to inform Charlie of how that had come about. As much as Alastor hated to admit it, without Husk at his side, he didn't know if he'd be able to face Ahkazriel. But Lucifer probably wouldn't take too kindly to a rogue Angel terrorizing Hell, and Charlie was the person to talk to in order to get to Lucifer.

He dipped his hand in the water to test the temperature and hummed contently. He turned the water off and made his way back to his bedroom. He froze in the doorway, eyes wide.

Husk lifted his head from where he'd been rubbing a paw over his face

"Al…" He muttered, voice far rougher than normal.

He shifted, groaning as his body ached, rigor mortis was a bitch. Alastor swallowed thickly, tears welling up in his eyes

"Y-You're alive…?" He stammered.

Husk leaned back on his hands and smirked

"Sorta," He teased.

His playful demeanor dropped when Alastor covered his mouth to muffle a sob and averted his gaze. Husk sat up

"Hey, I'm fine, Al. Really," He soothed "It was just a bump on the head."

Alastor curled in on himself a bit, trying to force himself to stop crying. Husk stood and approached him, pulling him into a hug and pressing their foreheads together

"Easy, sweetheart. I'm here," He assured, rubbing Alastor's back "I'm okay."

Alastor clung to him and sobbed into his shoulder

"I thought you were dead! Forever dead! When I woke up and you were gone I panicked, and when you didn't respond to my broadcast I went looking for you and I found you in an alley dead!" He babbled.

Husk tightened his grip around Alastor

"Why would you think I was 'forever' dead?" He asked.

Alastor sniffled and pulled away, wiping his eyes

"A-Ahkazriel," He whimpered "I know that's who attacked you."

Husk winced and averted his gaze

"Oh… I… I wasn't gonna tell ya. Didn't want you to worry," He muttered.

Alastor let out a laugh

"I already knew it was here. Vox told me. That's… That's why I didn't want you going out," He explained.

Husk frowned

"Why didn't you tell me that?" He scolded.

Alastor's smile widened

"I didn't want you to worry," He chuckled.

Husk blinked in surprise before snorting a chuckle and pulled Alastor into a kiss

"Quite a pair, aren't we?" He sighed.

Alastor eagerly cupped Husk's cheeks and pressed a desperate kiss to his lips. Husk stumbled back before eagerly wrapping his arms around Alastor's waist and leading him to the bed. He pushed him down and crawled on top of him, ravishing his mouth. Alastor dug his claws into Husk's back, hard enough to draw blood. He broke the kiss and whimpered in relief at the feeling of blood bubbling up and trickling down around his claws

"You're alive," He breathed "You're here."

Husk smirked and kissed the tip of Alastor's nose

"And I'm not goin' anywhere," He assured.

Alastor hummed contently

"I ran a bath, would you like to take it with me?" He asked.

Husk's wings fluttered a bit in excitement and he nodded

"Just so long as you promise to help dry me after," He teased.

Alastor grinned

"I have a blow dryer," He assured "And I look forward to seeing you  _ very  _ fluffy."

Husk chuckled and shook his head before standing. Alastor eagerly hopped to his feet and led Husk into the bathroom. He snapped his fingers to rid himself of his clothes and gripped the edge of his sink to keep from slipping on the floor tiles. Damn hooves. Husk wrapped his arms around Alastor's waist to help him balance and helped him to the tub. He sunk in, crinkling his nose a bit. Alastor eagerly got in, seated between Husk's legs, and relaxed back against Husk's chest

"A whole week without my kitty cuddles," He sighed "The humanity."

Husk smirked and wrapped his arms around Alastor's waist, resting his chin on his shoulder.

"On that topic, I got a bone to pick with you," He grumbled.

Alastor hummed softly in response.

"You know how I feel about you treating me like your pet in public, so why the fuck would you call me 'kitty' on a Hellwide broadcast!?" He scolded.

Alastor tilted his head to nuzzle Husk's cheek

"I knew it would get you home quickly," He explained "I know you hate it, which is precisely why I did it. Under normal circumstances, I would never do that to you."

Husk relaxed and sighed

"...Okay. I'll give you a pass this time, but only 'cause you had a good reason."

Alastor let his eyes fall closed

"Glad to hear it," He breathed.

Husk tilted his face down and nibbled on Alastor's shoulder, grinning when the action made him shudder. Alastor shifted and turned to look at Husk

"Do you want to have sex?" He asked.

Husk blushed deeply and averted his gaze

"I… I mean… Yeah. Always… But… I don't wanna make you uncomfortable or nothin'," He sputtered bashfully.

Alastor tilted his head and cocked an eyebrow

"Okay. That's not what I meant. I mean, would you like to have sex now?" He chuckled.

Husk's eyes widened and he blushed deeper

"A-Are you sure? 'Cause I don't wanna do it if you're only asking 'cause you thought I died. I don't want you to feel like you have to-"

Alastor quickly silenced him by putting a finger to his lips

"I want to. I want to be as close to you as I can. Is it because I thought I lost you? Yes. Do I feel like I  _ have _ to for whatever reason? No. I just want to be close to you, as close as physically possible, and I want you to feel good, and to know how much I really do love you," He soothed.

Husk swallowed thickly and just stared at Alastor for a moment

"Say… Say that again…" He mumbled when Alastor finally took his finger away from his lips.

Alastor tilted his head in confusion

"Say what again?" He chuckled.

Husk cupped his face

"That you love me," He breathed, just barely audible.

Alastor's eyes widened a fraction before they hooded and he leaned in close to press their foreheads together

"I love you," He purred.

Husk bit his lip and shuddered

"Okay… I want you," He muttered.

Alastor chuckled and kissed Husk's nose

"After we've bathed and dried," He hummed.

Husk grabbed the bar of soap

"Well, let's get clean then," He urged.

Alastor snickered fondly and relaxed back against Husk's chest, just letting him bathe them. He had to admit, he was a little excited, he'd never truly willingly had sex before, and certainly never out of love, so he was eager for the new experience. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is just Alastor and Husk being so in love for a while. Will they do it in Husk's chapter? Who knows, we'll see how the chapter decides to write itself once my fingers get a-tapping on the ol' keyboard.


	10. Crippled

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vox attempts to deal with the aftermath of what happened to Valentino.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is lots of unhealthy coping mechanisms and voxval softness.
> 
> It's in Vox's POV.

Vox pounded on the door to Valentino's bedroom, jacket and waistcoat discarded, sleeves rolled up and hands covered in soapy water and blood

"Babe! Come out! Talk to me," He pleaded.

Valentino had issued a strict 'Do Not Disturb' warning, so his employees and any other associates knew better than to disturb him. It meant Vox was left with cleaning up the mess. He didn't normally care too much, but having to scrub Valentino's blood off the floor made his stomach turn. Reminded him of when he'd woken up after Alastor drained him and found Valentino dead in the lounge.

He knocked on the door again and groaned in frustration when he received no response. He felt  _ bad _ . He'd  _ never  _ felt bad before. At least not since landing in Hell. But Valentino had all but  _ begged  _ him to stay around, and he didn't. He'd stepped out to find Alastor and had stumbled across Ahkazriel in an alleyway with Husk. Now, he didn't have any particular strong feelings toward the old drunk, but a part of him still had feelings for Alastor and didn't want him to have to mourn his best friend, so he'd stepped in.

Christ… If Valentino  _ ever  _ found out that Vox had been gone because he was helping  _ Alastor _ , he'd never be forgiven. And he knew it wouldn't be like the ten thousand other times Valentino had broken up with him for something stupid, it would be real. Valentino would be heartbroken, which meant he'd get nasty.

Vox sat down with his back to the door and sighed in defeat

"Please, Val, talk to me," He pleaded "I'm worried."

He'd never been so open with Valentino about how he felt. Yeah, sure, he was in love with the bitchy moth, but you'd never hear him admit to it.

No response.

Vox cursed and pulled his knees up to his chest, resting his screen against them

"I'm sorry, baby. I'm so sorry," He whimpered.

He hadn't felt this guilty since he was human. He'd abandoned his boyfriend to go check on an old crush, an old crush who'd not only never returned his feelings, but who had killed him at his most vulnerable. He leaned his head back and smacked it against the door, causing his face to go fuzzy

"Please, just yell at me! Hit me! Something!" He pleaded "Just… Let me know you're okay!"

It was a stupid request. Of  _ course  _ Valentino wasn't okay. He'd been smacked around and had his wings torn out by a sadistic, homicidal Angel with a grudge.

"C'mon, Precious," He urged "A sign. Throw something at the door, tell me to shut up, or go away. Just… Let me know you're alive in there."

The door was yanked open and Vox fell on his back with an unceremonious grunt. He looked up at Valentino and grinned sheepishly

"Hey, Cuddlebug," He chuckled awkwardly.

Valentino had his hands on his hips and was glaring down at Vox, clad in nothing but some loose sweatpants. As much as Vox loved the stiletto boots, fishnet, leather booty shorts and crop-top, his favorite look on Valentino was a simple pair of sweatpants. But now wasn't the time to oggle. He pushed himself to his feet and followed Valentino into the room, wincing when he immediately curled up in bed, arms wrapped around himself, feeling the empty space where his wings should be.

Vox sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed

"I'm sorry I wasn't here, Precious," He mumbled "I really am. I know I screwed up."

Valentino sniffled but otherwise didn't respond. Vox shifted and lied down behind Valentino, awkwardly spooning him. It wasn't that spooning someone almost twice your height was inherently awkward, it was that Vox lying on his side was awkward. Valentino tensed up under his touch, which made his heart ache

"Shh, ain't gonna hurt ya," He soothed.

Valentino relaxed somewhat and shifted closer to Vox, pressing his back to him only to cry out in pain and jerk away. Vox winced and turned over to lie on his back

"C'mere, Sweet pea, let me hold you," He urged.

Valentino rolled over, shifted further down the bed, and cuddled up to Vox's chest, trembling and whimpering softly. Vox didn't know how else to help, he'd never seen Valentino like this before. Then again, no one had ever ripped Valentino's wings out before. Still… Vox felt like there had to be more, with the way Valentino was reacting. Knowing vaguely what Ahkazriel had done to Alastor made Vox hesitant to ask. He didn't know how long the Angel had been there before he arrived, and therefore had no way of knowing how much time for torture it'd had.

He gently pet the soft fluff on Valentino's back, being mindful of the gaping wounds where his wings used to be

"I'm here now," He soothed "And I ain't gonna let it touch you again."

Valentino scoffed and pulled away, sitting up

"What does it matter!?" He snapped "It already crippled me!"

He wrapped his arms around himself and doubled over, trembling. Vox sat up and wrapped his arms around Valentino's waist, squeezing him gently

"No it didn't. Look, I know it sucks, but you'll manage without your wings," He assured "You rarely use them anyway."

Valentino just shot him a glare and he averted his gaze sheepishly. Valentino sighed and lowered his gaze

"I'm hideous," He whimpered "And useless."

Vox sighed in frustration, he didn't have the patience for this

"You  _ are  _ more than your wings, ya know," He attempted to comfort, although he was positive he wasn't helping in the least.

Valentino stood and approached a window, just staring out it. Vox averted his gaze and sighed softly

"I wish I could fix it, Val…" He muttered, he hated seeing Valentino so vulnerable, it didn't suit him.

Valentino didn't respond, just wrapped his arms around himself to feel his barren back. Vox scoffed and stood up, spinning Valentino like a top and grabbing his wrists as best he could

"Quit doin' that!" He scolded "It's not helping!"

Valentino flinched before his eyes widened in shock. Vox brought Valentino's hands to his screen where his mouth was and gently shocked him. Valentino let a little smile slip at Vox's sad attempt at kissing him. He sighed softly and pulled his hands away, returning to the bed to mope. Vox rubbed the back of his head

"Other than the wings… Did it… Do anything else to you?" He asked slowly.

Valentino curled a bit more in on himself

"No… But it intended to…" He mumbled, voice muffled by the pillow he'd buried his head in.

Vox nodded and sat down on the edge of the bed, gently rubbing Valentino's shoulder

"How do you know?" He really shouldn't be pushing it.

Valentino dug his claws into his arms and whimpered

"I felt its…-" He quickly cut himself off and curled into a tighter ball.

Vox frowned, okay… He'd stop asking now. 

"How do you feel? I mean… Are you weakened, like Al?" He changed the subject.

Valentino sat up and shook his head

"I don't  _ think  _ so," He huffed "I'm… Scared to try anything… What if I  _ am  _ weakened?"

Vox winced, oh no. Valentino bit his lip, antennae flicking about it worry

"I've pissed a  _ lot  _ of people off, Voxxy!" He panicked "More than Alastor! I'm not exactly well liked!"

Vox pulled him into a hug and rubbed his lower back, hushing him softly

"Relax, Precious. Breathe," He soothed "I ain't gonna let no one lay a finger on ya."

Valentino clung to Vox and whimpered

"Promise?"

Vox tightened his grip

"On my Afterlife."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Vox being forced to confront his feelings for Valentino:  
> [](https://ibb.co/7GdLsqD)


	11. A Long Time Coming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Husk and Alastor finally go all the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Husk hated to admit it, but the heat and sound of the blow dryer was putting him to sleep a bit. He shook his head to wake himself up. Alastor chuckled softly and turned the blow dryer off, putting it aside. He stood and eagerly came around to look at Husk, biting his lip and bouncing excitedly

"You're  _ so  _ fluffy!" He laughed "So cute!"

Husk scratched the back of his head and blushed deeply. Normally after he took a shower, he just let himself air dry. Which tended to either leave his fur looking ratty or matted. But now, he'd been bathed, dried, and brushed. Like a show cat. Alastor covered his mouth to stifle a giggle before cupping Husk's cheeks

"I almost don't want to mess it up," He purred, eyes hooding.

Husk cleared his throat

"Well… We could wait a bit longer, if you want. I've already been waiting to get you in bed for forty years, so what's a couple more days?" He chuckled sheepishly. 

Alastor's eyes widened and his jaw dropped a bit

"Forty years!?" He gaped "That's… That's how long we've known each other."

Husk smiled nervously

"Yeah… I know."

Alastor blushed deeply and kissed Husk's nose

"Well, you've been waiting so patiently for so long, it would be rude of me to deny you any longer," He cooed while crawling into Husk's lap and kissing him deeply.

Husk eagerly wrapped his arms around Alastor's waist and flipped their position, pinning him to the bed and ravishing his mouth.

"I love you," He breathed against Alastor's lips, gripping his thighs.

Alastor gasped softly and wrapped his legs around Husk's waist

"I love you too," He purred.

Husk shivered. They didn't have to strip, since Alastor hadn't bothered getting dressed after their bath. He ducked his head down to nibble and suck on Alastor's throat, littering his skin with hickeys. Alastor tilted his head out of the way and whimpered, spreading his legs a bit more. Husk made his way down Alastor's chest to his nipples, taking one into his mouth and suckling gently, glancing up to watch Alastor's reaction. Alastor bit his lip and squeezed his eyes shut

"Mmm, you're tongue," He breathed "Scratchy."

Husk smirked and ran a long, flat-tongued lick across Alastor's nipple, which caused him to moan and arch his back

"You like it?" He asked, unable to stop himself from purring.

Alastor's grin widened at the sound and he nodded

"Yes. I believe I'll like anything you do to me," He teased.

Husk's purring got louder and he eagerly got back to work, mapping and marking Alastor's body. He got to his waist and paused over the handprint scar. He glanced up at Alastor and locked eyes with him as he planted a firm kiss to it. Alastor visibly flinched and his ears pinned back

"H-Husker, please," He whimpered "Not there…"

Husk nodded and left the scar alone, opting instead to continue heading lower until he reached Alastor's cock. He wrapped his hand around the base and kissed the head before swallowing it whole. Alastor wasn't hard yet, but Husk hadn't expected him to be. He closed his eyes and slowly bobbed his head, teasing the soft flesh with his tongue.

Claws tangled in his fur and he glanced up, blushing deeply at Alastor's face. His eyes were tightly shut, and he was biting his lip hard enough to draw blood, like he was intentionally silencing himself, face beet red, brows arched. Husk shivered and closed his eyes again, taking Alastor to the root and swallowing. Alastor yelped and pulled on Husk's fur

"C-Careful," He whined.

Husk resumed bobbing his head, suckling gently and teasing the head and underside with his tongue, until Alastor grew hard in his mouth. He reluctantly pulled off with a pop and shot Alastor a lazy smirk

"Was that okay? Did I do good?" He purred.

Alastor panted heavily, legs already trembling

"I-I'm not used to so much focus being on me," He admitted "I thought you'd just… Stick it in and be done with it."

Husk pinned his ears back and frowned

"I'm not just fucking you, Al," He reminded "I don't want this if you don't feel good."

Alastor lowered his gaze, smile a shy shadow of its usual intensity

"You make me feel all warm inside when you say things like that…" He mumbled.

Husk shifted up and kissed him deeply. Alastor squirmed and turned his head

"Do you know where your mouth just was!?" He scolded.

Husk bursted out laughing and kissed the tip of Alastor's nose

"Yeah, I do. And it's about to be somewhere much better," He purred, ducking back down and hoisting Alastor's thighs onto his shoulders.

Alastor blinked down at him in confusion before realization dawned on him and he blushed deeply, covering his mouth to keep from squeaking when Husk pressed his lips against his hole. Husk closed his eyes and gently traced his tongue around the rim before eagerly licking at the hole. Alastor arched and sobbed

"Y-Your tongue!" He cried.

Husk spread his wings out in excitement and opened his eyes to watch Alastor's gorgeous expressions as he dragged his rough tongue over that sensitive hole over and over again. Alastor was already a trembling, blubbering mess, desperately trying to close his legs to no avail. Husk slowly pressed his tongue inside, scraping it against his insides. Alastor tangled his hands in Husk's fur and pushed his face harder against him, much to Husk's great enjoyment. Alastor could crush him with his thighs right then and Husk would die happy.

He reluctantly pulled away, dragging his tongue out, causing Alastor to mewl, and smirked

"You good?" He teased "Fuck… You really like when I eat your ass, huh?"

Alastor took deep breaths, legs still trembling, and he hadn't even cum yet

"My legs… Feel like… Jelly," He slurred.

Husk snickered and shifted up, pecking Alastor on the lips, which caused him to crinkle his nose in disgust. Husk just chuckled at him and shook his head fondly

"Ya know, you have blown me in the past. Sure, you were high as a kite on Valentino's blood, but still," He teased.

Alastor reached down to paw at Husk's erection

"That's different. I  _ know  _ your old boy is clean," He huffed.

Husk couldn't help but crack up a bit at the outdated slang

"We  _ just _ got out of the bath, Al, how dirty do you think your dick is getting in twenty minutes?" He teased.

Alastor averted his gaze and blushed deeply

"Hush."

Husk nuzzled their noses together and sighed fondly

"You're too fuckin' cute, ya know that?" He breathed lovingly before pulling Alastor into a deep kiss.

Alastor squirmed in an attempt to escape before slowly relaxing to the sensation and moaning into Husk's mouth. Husk rubbed his rough tongue against Alastor's and smirked at the way the feeling made him jerk. He reluctantly broke the kiss, a string of saliva connecting their lips for a moment before breaking

"You know, we're gonna have to get  _ much  _ messier," He purred "So if you don't wanna get dirty, I suggest we stop now."

Alastor licked his lips and gave Husk a look he assumed was supposed to be seductive

"No, we can continue," He hummed "I'll just have to take a bath again."

Husk snorted a laugh and shook his head before looking around

"You wouldn't happen to have lube, eh?" He asked.

Alastor winced and shook his head

"No… I've never had a need for it," He admitted.

Husk cursed softly, ears pinning back

"Damn… Al, I can't… Fuck," He grumbled, glancing down at his barbed cock.

Alastor pouted and averted his gaze

"I guess we have to stop here for today?" He asked, clearly disappointed. 

Husk looked around the room for something,  _ anything _ , that could ease the way. His eyes zoned in on the bottle of lotion on the dresser in the corner. He stood and grabbed it before returning

"Nope! This'll do," He snickered triumphantly. 

Alastor grinned and spread his legs a bit farther

"Good!" He chirped.

Husk eased him farther up the bed and knelt between his legs

"How do you want to do this?" He asked while passing the bottle to Alastor "You're gonna have to prep yourself. Claws."

Alastor nodded and squeezed some of the lotion into his hand before slicking up his fingers. He sat up and pressed a finger into himself, wincing slightly at the feeling

"Oh… It's been awhile," He commented before relaxing "I don't know. Do you have a preferred position?"

Husk licked his lips

"I mean… Not really. Any position where I can see that gorgeous face of yours would be good," He purred.

Alastor blushed deeply and turned his attention back to his task. He panted softly as he slowly worked himself open, pressing a second finger inside. Husk watched, cock twitching with need

"That's it," He praised "You're doing great."

Alastor chuckled softly and pressed a third finger inside

"You know, I have tried this," He informed "Maybe only once or twice, but I think I have a good idea of what I'm doing."

Husk cocked an eyebrow and smirked

"I'm sure you do," He teased.

Alastor huffed and tugged his fingers free

"Okay, I'm ready," He stated, shifting up the bed to get comfortable against the pillows.

Husk crawled forward and nestled between his legs, teasing the tip of his cock against Alastor's hole before grabbing the bottle of lotion and applying more than a generous amount. He really hoped he didn't tear anything.

"Sure you're ready?" He worried.

Alastor nodded eagerly

"Yes, I'm ready. I know I am," He urged "I promise, I won't freak out."

Husk chuckled softly and shook his head before gripping Alastor's hips 

"That ain't what I'm worried about," He assured while slowly pushing inside.

Alastor dug his claws into Husk's shoulders

"Oh!" He gasped "That's… Different."

Husk smirked 

"Does it hurt?" He breathed.

Alastor squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head

"Not yet… I have a feeling it'll sting a little when you pull out though," He panted.

Husk winced and nodded

"Yeah… Probably," He muttered "Sorry."

Alastor waved a hand dismissively

"I knew what I was getting myself into, dear," He assured.

Husk bottomed out with a soft groan and leaned his forehead against Alastor's

"Fuck… You're fucking tight," He praised.

Alastor chuckled softly and pecked Husk's lips

"Are you going to hold still all day, or are you going to show me Heaven?" He purred.

Husk's fur stood and his feathers ruffled as he shuddered, gripping Alastor's tiny waist and slowly pulling out. Alastor tossed his head back and mewled

"Ah! W-What a feeling!" He whined, legs trembling "S-So… Identifiable."

Husk smiled slightly, that was good, meant he'd never be mistaken for Ahkazriel, Valentino, or Vox. Or any of the other demons who'd had the audacity to take a quick piece of Alastor while he couldn't defend himself.

"Guess you've never been with a cat demon before?" He asked.

Alastor shook his head and cringed slightly

"The closest comparison is the serpent, but only because of the barbs," He explained "You're probably the only cat demon I've ever fraternized with in any way."

Husk had paused at about halfway so Alastor could talk. He nodded at what he said before slowly sinking back in

"Lucky me."

Alastor wrapped his arms around Husk's neck

"This isn't really something I want to talk about right now," He whimpered.

Husk chuckled and nodded

"Right, sorry," He soothed before ducking down to nibble on Alastor's neck, picking up his pace.

Alastor gasped and tightened his grip, doing his best to meet Husk's movements. His technique was a bit clumsy, but Husk loved it. Just like he loved everything else about Alastor. 

"Relax, babe," He breathed, angling to grind against Alastor's prostate, which caused him to stiffen "You're tight enough that you don't gotta put in much effort."

When Alastor didn't respond Husk frowned, stilling inside him. He brought a hand up to cup Alastor's cheek

"Al?" He breathed "You okay?"

He looked far away, a look Husk had long since learned to identify. Damn…

"Alastor," He called, gently tapping his cheek "C'mon, sweetheart, breathe."

Alastor let out a shaky breath as his gaze focused

"S-Sorry," He stammered "It's that… Spot…"

Husk frowned and looked down at their joining

"Your prostate?" He huffed.

Alastor flushed deeply and nodded

"It's fine. Keep going, I'm okay," He assured.

Husk nodded and pulled him into a deep kiss while grinding against that spot. Alastor moaned into the kiss and arched his back, tangling his hands in Husk's fur, just below the nape of his wings.

Admittedly, Husk didn't really like that area to be touched, where his wings met his back, but it was an 'undeniably Husker' area, as Alastor called it, so Husk would just grit his teeth and bear it. It was the combination of fur and feathers that wasn't overly common, and therefore difficult for Alastor to mistake for anyone else.

"Better now?" He asked gently after breaking the kiss, continuing to gently grind against that spot.

Alastor nodded frantically, legs twitching

"T-Too much," He whimpered.

Husk cocked an eyebrow before snickering in realization, grinding harder, which caused Alastor to wail

"A little too sensitive?" He teased.

Alastor reached up slightly and yanked a small feather out of Husk's wing, which made him yelp

"Yes! Please," He whimpered.

Husk flapped his wings a bit before deciding to show Alastor mercy and continue thrusting. Alastor slumped and panted heavily, twitching when Husk's barbs would gouge at his sweet spot

"You're mean," He scolded breathlessly. 

Husk kissed his cheek and nuzzled him

"You already knew that," He purred, picking up the pace.

Alastor buried his face in Husk's shoulder and whined

"Please, so close," He whimpered.

Husk chuckled and picked up the pace, lowering his hands to grip Alastor's waist

"Go ahead, sweetheart," He breathed.

Alastor cried out, tugging on Husk's fur and shuddering as he came. Husk dug his claws into Alastor's skin and cursed at his hole clenching tight around him. He released Alastor's waist and rested his arms next to his head, continuing to grind into him. Alastor took deep gulps of breath and whimpered as he rode out his orgasm, before starting to twitch and squirm when Husk didn't stop

"Too sensitive," He whined.

Husk kissed the tip of his nose

"Just… I'm close," He panted, resting his forehead against Alastor's shoulder.

Alastor wrapped his arms around Husk's head and scratched behind his ears

"Please, daddy, fill me up," He begged.

That did it. Arousal shot through Husk like lightning and he came with a startled curse, pressing as deep in as he could go and eagerly abiding Alastor's pleading. Alastor shivered and bit his lip

"Mmm… The perfect temperature," He giggled to himself.

Husk didn't bother to ask, he had a feeling he knew what Alastor was referring to, and  _ now _ wouldn't be the time to draw attention to it. He sluggishly lifted his head and pulled Alastor into a tired, sloppy kiss

"You okay? Was that okay?" He panted.

Alastor's smile broadened and he nodded eagerly

"More than okay," He assured "I look forward to doing it again. It was  _ quite _ enjoyable."

Husk smirked before collapsing and snuggling right up on top of Alastor

"Great…"

With that he passed out, not bothering to pull out or roll over, but Alastor wasn't complaining, so it was probably fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alastor's kink is Husk calling him 'sweetheart' and Husk's kink is calling Alastor 'sweetheart', so obviously they're perfect together.


	12. Stunted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Valentino tests his powers with disappointing results.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter takes place after a few days.
> 
> This chapter is in Valentino's POV

Valentino stared blankly at the wall in front of him, feeling his naked back. There was a small draft in the room, and he could feel it on his skin. He never could before and he wanted to cry.

He couldn't stop thinking about Alastor. Had  _ this _ been how he'd felt? Defenseless and scared. Violated. He raised a hand and cautiously rubbed his fingers together. He knew he should just… Try. Try to use  _ something _ , but he was terrified it wouldn't work. What if he'd been weakened? He couldn't keep that hidden forever, people were bound to notice something was up  _ eventually.  _

Hands touched his shoulders and he scrambled backwards, falling off the bed onto his back. Blinding pain shot through him and he cried out, wounds on his back opening up and spilling blood all over the floor.

"Shit!" Vox cursed, quickly scurrying around the bed and kneeling at Valentino's side "I'm sorry, I shoulda warned ya."

Valentino sniffled, sitting up and reaching back to try and stop the bleeding

"M-Make some damn noise when you walk!" He spat, using one set of hands to fruitlessly grope at his injuries, and the other set to wipe the tears from his eyes.

Vox nodded and eased Valentino's hands away

"Let me. I've got better access," He soothed, setting a first aid kit on the ground and popping it open.

Valentino pulled his knees up to his chest and rested his chin on them as Vox cleaned his wounds

"You'd do anything for me, right?" He asked softly.

Vox pawed at Valentino's shoulder until his sat up straight

"Of course," He agreed while wrapping gauze bandages around Valentino's chest.

"Bring me that monster's head."

Vox froze for a moment before he continued his task

"I had every intention to," He purred.

Valentino let a little smile slip before he glanced around

"Were you able to find my wings?" He asked.

Vox shook his head, flopping down and leaning back against the bed

"No. They ain't in the penthouse. I looked everywhere. Think Ahkazriel took 'em," He explained.

Valentino sighed in frustration, smoothing out the floof of his intact antenna 

"Of course it did," He scowled "Can't risk me sewin' 'em back on, huh!?"

Vox squeezed Valentino's knee reassuringly

"Relax, Cuddlebug," He soothed.

A smirk tugged at Valentino's lips and he blushed lightly. It was the  _ stupidest _ pet name, but it made his heart flutter. Only from Vox, though. If anyone else dared call him that, he'd have them eviscerated. He shifted over to Vox and cuddled up to him

"Am I still pretty?" It was so quiet it was barely audible.

Vox wrapped an arm around Valentino's waist

"Are you kiddin'? You're the hottest piece of ass in Hell!" He snickered.

Valentino hooded his eyes and pinned his antennae back

"You mean it?" He hated feeling so vulnerable, hated needing validation. 

Vox gave him a comforting squeeze

"Why would I lie?"

Valentino narrowed his eyes

"So I don't hit you, or yell at you?" He grumbled "Just answer the question!"

He  _ needed _ to be beautiful. Without his power and status, it was all he had! He flinched when Vox cupped his cheek and turned his face so they were making eye contact

"You're perfect," Vox soothed "Quit worryin' so much, Precious."

Valentino planted a kiss on Vox's screen, over his lips, and crawled into his lap. Vox squinted an eye and snickered

"Easy, toots, I'm breakable," He joked, loosely wrapping his arms around Valentino's waist and grabbing his ass.

Valentino continued to litter Vox's screen with kisses, arching into his touch

"Pamper me," He whimpered.

Vox ran his hands up to Valentino's lower back and gently dug his fingers into the tense muscles, massaging out any knots he came across

"You know you're the most gorgeous creature in all of Hell, wings or no wings," He purred "I mean, look at you, such pretty blue skin, those endless legs-" He dropped a hand to squeeze Valentino's butt "- This  _ perfect  _ ass. You're a perfect little sex demon."

Valentino shuddered and pressed himself closer to Vox

"Keep going," He urged.

Vox grinned

"Nope. You know it doesn't work like that. You give what you get," He snickered.

Valentino pulled away slightly, arms loosely draped around Vox's neck, and pouted

"C'mon Voxxy, I've had a rough day," He whimpered "Make me feel better. Tell me I'm pretty."

Vox winced and averted his gaze, blushing deeply

"Alright, alright. Wipe that adorable pout off your adorable face," He grumbled bashfully.

Valentino smirked, antennae flicking about excitedly. He flinched slightly and glanced over his shoulder, antennae quickly drooping again

"Oh… Right," He mumbled, in his excitement, he'd tried to rub his wings together, and the attempt had caused the flight muscles around the wounds to contract, reminding him that he didn't have wings to rub.

Vox sighed softly and lowered his gaze. Valentino pulled away and crawled back into bed, suddenly feeling very depressed. Vox pushed himself to his feet

"I'm gonna… Go finish cleaning up…" He muttered before fleeing the room.

Valentino watched him leave, whimpering softly to himself. He curled up in a ball and hid under the covers. He was pitiful. Pitiful and pathetic. Vox clearly didn't want him anymore. Valentino sat up with a huff, he needed to get his pep back.

He scooted to the edge of his bed and stared down at his hands. He closed his eyes and focused on building energy in his palm. He slowly opened an eye and his heart sank. Nothing.

He pinned his antennae back and stared intently at his palm, trying to force energy to build. All it got him was pain flaring up in his back. It was due to Ahkazriel cauterizing the wounds with holy light. He was stunted. Just like Alastor had been.

Valentino ran a hand over his face and cursed, curling up under the covers again. He was weak, and pitiful. Disfigured, stunted, and hideous. What was he supposed to do now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Valentino, having a nervous breakdown after getting his wings torn off:  
> 


	13. Throne

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After getting a good amount of slaughtering done, Ahkazriel is back up to Throne power, and ready to start setting his plans in motion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is in Ahkazriel's POV and features a special guest.

It took a few days for Ahkazriel to hunt down all his prey. A few of them he didn't bother with, like the snake, who'd really only used Alastor until he'd achieved release, and then left. Less heinous demons, like the snake, were only subjected to minor torture. The others though, who had hung around to inflict brutal aggression on Alastor met the full force of Ahkazriel's wrath.

After consuming over a dozen demons, Ahkazriel was buzzing with the power of a Throne, his secondary pair of wings having been restored to him. His face looked no better, but he hadn't really expected it to, there was something strange about that demon. Alastor. His power was unusual, and Ahkazriel had, foolishly, come into direct contact with it.

He'd been hanging around the hotel, watching Angel Dust, for about a day now. He liked the sassy spider, and supposed his fruitless attempts at redemption were admirable. Valentino and Vox stayed locked up inside the den of sin they called a dwelling, which frustrated Ahkazriel immensely. He wanted to  _ see  _ the tempter, Valentino, broken down into nothing.

Wings ripped from his body, power callously sealed with a single holy lick. It was perfect. Now, all Ahkazriel needed was to get the pretty clipped butterfly on his own, so he could have time to  _ really  _ teach him his place. Ahkazriel glanced down when his breeding bits began to tingle. He scowled at them and took off into the air.

All this waiting around was becoming tedious. He had to lure Valentino out somehow. Perhaps… Through the spider? Hmm.

Ahkazriel landed outside a bar in a denser part of the city. Not ideal, but it couldn't be helped. He pulled his demon pelt over himself and approached the bar. He had no intention of going inside, but he'd hang around the windows, observing the patrons.

He'd noticed these particular demons a while back. Now, Ahkazriel made it a personal promise to never needlessly harm a woman. Even a sinner. So the girls were of limits, the bomber and the spider-girl, but  _ this  _ tiny spiderling was male, and therefore up for grabs.

He had no idea what their relationship was like, but Ahkazriel could smell a familial relationship wafting from the two, and he knew humans, and therefore most sinners, tended to have a weird obsession with  _ family _ . As if family mattered at all.

Ahkazriel perked up when the tiny thing slid off his stool and made his way for the exit, standing straight but masking a slight wobble. Drunk.  _ Perfect. _ Ahkazriel stepped to the side as the spiderling left the bar and turned down the street. He glanced ahead for any alleyways and smirked, quickly teleporting to the closest one. 

There were a few other demons in this alley. Drug addicts and tough guys. Putting the fear of God in them was easy enough, Ahkazriel simply had to remove his hood and shriek, and off they scrambled in terror.

Ahkazriel adjusted his hood and faced the mouth of the alley, reaching out and snatching up the spiderling with ease. His knee-jerk reaction to being grabbed was to yank a cleverly hidden knife out of its sheath and stab back at his attacker. The piddly blade didn't even scratch Ahkazriel's brilliant marble skin.

Ahkazriel slammed the demon into the wall and covered his mouth, letting the pelt fall from his body. The demon's eyes widened in horror and he kicked out with the tiniest feet Ahkazriel had ever seen. He grabbed then with ease in one hand

" **K̵e̸e̴p̶ ̴s̷q̴u̶i̸r̴m̴i̸n̴g̸ ̷a̵n̸d̴ ̵I̴ ̴s̵n̷a̵p̶ ̶t̶h̷e̵m̷,̷** " He warned.

The demon immediately stilled as best he could, legs still twitching in Ahkazriel's grip, but that was likely from the pain of being touched by a Throne, so he'd let it slide.

" **I̵ ̴n̸e̸e̸d̵ ̴t̶o̸ ̵u̷s̴e̶ ̶y̴o̶u̶ ̷a̷s̸ ̷b̵a̵i̷t̶.̷ ̸W̵h̸a̵t̴ ̴i̵s̸ ̶y̸o̴u̶r̸ ̵n̷a̸m̶e̶?̵** " He asked, removing his hand from the demon's mouth, only to loosely wrap his around his throat.

The demon swallowed thickly

"Y-You gonna kill me if I don't answer?" He sputtered.

Ahkazriel cringed at the accent. How he loathed  _ New York _ . He nodded. The demon took a breath

"Arackniss…" He grumbled.

Ahkazriel cocked an eyebrow but didn't remark

" **A̷s̵ ̷I̷ ̷s̴a̷i̷d̸, Arackniss,̴ ̴I̴'̷m̷ ̸g̶o̷i̵n̸g̷ ̴t̶o̶ ̵u̸s̶e̸ ̸y̸o̸u̸ ̷a̴s̵ ̸b̶a̸i̵t̴.̸ ̸U̴n̶f̷o̵r̵t̴u̸n̸a̶t̶e̶l̷y̸ ̷f̶o̷r̸ ̵y̵o̵u̶,̵ ̷t̶h̸a̶t̸ ̵m̸e̵a̵n̷s̶ ̴I̵'̸l̶l̷ ̸h̷a̶v̶e̴ ̶t̴o̶ ̸r̴o̸u̸g̶h̵ ̴y̷o̵u̴ ̷u̸p̸ ̵a̴ ̷b̴i̸t̵ ̶t̷o̷ ̸m̶a̶k̴e̷ ̸i̷t̶ ̸b̶e̷l̶i̶e̷v̸a̸b̶l̶e̸,̸** " He purred.

Arackniss crinkled his nose but didn't object. How intriguing.

" **Y̴o̸u̷ ̸a̴r̶e̵ ̸a̶c̸c̷u̶s̶t̷o̵m̵e̴d̸ ̸t̵o̵ ̶t̴h̷i̵s̶ ̸s̷i̷t̵u̶a̴t̶i̷o̷n̴?̷** " Ahkazriel wondered.

Arackniss tugged his legs a bit

"I'm from a mob family," He drawled "I'm used ta ransom. Jus' never expected ta be held by an Angel, is all…"

Ahkazriel pulled Arackniss close, smirking at the way he sputtered and squirmed

"I̴ ̶e̵x̴p̷e̸c̶t̷ ̸y̷o̷u̷'̵l̴l̷ ̴b̷e̵ ̵a̵ ̸m̸o̶d̷e̷l̷ ̷p̵r̵i̶s̵o̵n̷e̸r̴ ̷t̶h̸e̷n̴,̵ ̸p̶e̴t̶,̵" He purred before spreading his wings and taking off.

He'd decided to commandeer the lair of one of the demons he'd slain. It was roomy and gave Ahkazriel a place to work. He unceremoniously dumped Arackniss onto the floor and approached the screens. They displayed areas of Hell, which made it easier for Ahkazriel to get his spying done. Hell tended to interfere with Heaven's eyes. He glanced over his shoulder at Arackniss, now desperately trying to pry a window open.

There was no way he could escape, Ahkazriel had the place warded against demons, but that didn't mean he had to abide insubordination. He wasn't a huge fan of such roundabout plans, but Angel Dust was so on edge now, and never left the hotel on his own. Arackniss was just bait to lure Angel Dust out of hiding, as the whore was the true target. Surely Valentino would do  _ something  _ if his star just suddenly went missing. He approached Arackniss and yanked him off the wall by one of his tiny legs, squeezing the thin bone until it snapped, causing Arackniss to scream and claw at Ahkazriel's hand. He just dropped the spider and returned to the screens

"I̸ ̵d̸i̶d̸ ̶w̵a̴r̴n̴ ̸y̶o̶u̵,̶" He drawled.

"You son of a bitch!" Arackniss screamed.

Several shots went off and Ahkazriel froze at the feeling of several  _ things  _ colliding with his back. He glanced over his shoulder disinterestedly at the little lead pellets now lodged in his feathers and marble flesh. He turned fully towards the spider demon, whose fury quickly devolved to gut-wrenching horror

"I-I'm sorry!" He sputtered, scrambling away as best he could.

Ahkazriel smirked and licked his lips. This was going to be  _ fun _ .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahkazriel doesn't know if Arackniss will actually be helpful or not, but y'all better pray that he is, or things won't go very well for him.
> 
> Yes, Ahkazriel is eating the demons he kills in order to gain power. Yes, this will have negative side-effects down the road. No, I'm not telling you what they'll be :P
> 
> And before anyone points it out, I know that Ahkazriel's dialogue isn't bolded around the end of the chapter. It's intentional. I'm not gonna explain why, but it is intentional.


	14. The Blade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alastor reluctantly returns to the hotel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's some Al/Angel softness in this chapter, also Al running Husk ragged.

Alastor hummed contently as he twirled a lock of Husk's fur around his finger, free hand wrapped around his dick and eagerly jerking him off. Husk had his eyes squeezed shut and his teeth sunk into his bottom lip, panting as he humped up into Alastor's hand. Alastor had lost count how many times he'd 'proven his love' to Husk over the past few days, but he was content with that. And it kept him entertained to see his minou experiencing such pleasure.

Husk's cock pulsed in his hand and he whimpered, digging his claws into Alastor's back. Alastor hummed softly as cum oozed over his fingers. He brought his hand to his mouth and licked it clean as Husk panted to catch his breath

"You finished quite fast this time," He commented.

Husk flipped him off with a groan before covering his face with his hands and muttering something incoherently. Alastor tilted his ears closer and cocked an eyebrow

"What was that?" He cooed playfully.

Husk sat up, wings limp from exhaustion, ears drooping as well

"Look, Al, I love you. I  _ really  _ love you, and I'm thrilled you're open to having sex with me, like  _ really  _ thrilled, and you're doing a great job with everything you do, I appreciate it," He started, shifting to sit on the edge of the bed.

Alastor sat up and followed suit

"But-?"

Husk sighed softly and slumped

"But, I need a break. You're running me ragged, sweetheart," He explained "I didn't die  _ young _ ."

Realization hit Alastor and he averted his gaze, blushing deeply in embarrassment

"Oh! Right… Sorry, my dear. I'll ease off a bit. I suppose I'm just… A tad bored," He explained.

Husk chuckled and wrapped an arm around Alastor's shoulders, pulling him into a hug

"You don't gotta apologize," He soothed "I just can't go multiple times a day anymore. I don't have it in me."

Alastor giggled softly and nuzzled Husk's cheek

"My grumpy old man," He teased "Can't keep up with your young lover?"

Husk scoffed and playfully ruffled Alastor's hair

"More like I wasn't expecting you to have such an insatiable libido, all things considered," He drawled.

Alastor laughed and hopped to his feet

"Again, it's because I'm bored. I don't like to be cooped up," He hummed "If I had other activities to occupy my time, I wouldn't have to run you ragged, my dear."

Husk nodded and leaned back on his hands

"Well, maybe we outta head back to the hotel? We'll be together, and no rogue Angel is gonna be stupid enough to cause a seen in public, in broad daylight, so I'm sure we'll be fine," He suggested.

Alastor pursed his lips together and pinned his ears back

"Logically, I know you have a point, but… I'm still nervous," He admitted.

Husk's eyes widened a fraction before a soft smile slipped

"Makes sense you would be, but that shouldn't stop you from living your life," He reminded.

Alastor nodded before looking around the room. He approached his wardrobe and pulled it open, grabbing a sealed, warded box off the shelf and handing it to Husk

"Keep that on you. It will make me feel better."

Husk frowned as he took the box. He broke the seals and opened it, breath hitching.

"So this is where it went," He commented while picking up Ahkazriel's blade, turning it over to feel the weight.

Alastor sat down next to Husk and leaned against him

"I could never bring myself to use it. Or even really touch it, so I think you should keep it, to defend yourself," He urged.

Husk nodded and kissed Alastor's forehead

"Sure. For you," He soothed.

Alastor's grin widened and he squished himself as close to Husk as possible.

Alastor didn't take overly kindly to returning to the hotel. He knew Husk could tell he was uneasy, but he couldn't stay cooped up any longer, Ahkazriel had bound him indoors once before, and Alastor couldn't take it again.

"Al! You're back!" Charlie exclaimed excitedly, bounding over to him "Good! I was starting to get worried!"

Alastor approached her

"Yes… Sorry about that, my dear. There's a… Small problem I've been attempting to deal with. Stubborn thing. But, I've decided not to let it run my life, so here I am," He cooed.

Vaggie rolled her eyes as she approached with her arms crossed

" _ Great. _ So  _ glad  _ to have you back," She drawled sarcastically. 

Charlie playfully elbowed her in the arm, causing her to let a small slip

"So what's this problem, maybe we can help?" She asked.

Alastor's breath hitched and his ears pinned back

"It's… Personal," He lied, he really just didn't want to get the residents of the hotel involved unless it was  _ absolutely  _ necessary. For their safety.

Vaggie took a step forward

"It wouldn't happen to have anything to do with why Angel Dust is acting so weird, would it?" She huffed.

Alastor furrowed his brows slightly in confusion

"I'm sorry, my dear, I haven't spoken with Angel Dust at all recently, so if he  _ is  _ acting strange, I wouldn't have noticed," He admitted "But, I'll go talk to him. If my problem and his  _ are _ the same, then it's relevant to me."

With that he headed off to find Angel, winking at Husk as he passed.

Angel Dust was in his room, tending to his pig. Alastor didn't knock, although considering Angel's pastimes, he probably should have.

"Angel," He hummed.

Angel looked up from squishing Fat Nuggets' cheeks

"Hey, Smiles. Where the heck have you been?" He greeted.

Alastor waved his staff to clean and make Angel's bed before sitting down. Angel cocked an eyebrow and smirked at that but didn't comment.

"Apologies for my absence, Charlie tells me you've been acting strangely. Would you like to tell me about it?"

Angel went rigid and he stood, Fat Nuggets in his arms, and sat down next to Alastor on the bed

"I would… But I can't," He mumbled before biting his bottom lip "Hey… Can I ask you something? Might be a tad personal."

Alastor stared at the pig and nodded

"You can ask me anything, dear, the question is whether or not I'll answer," He teased.

Angel snickered

"Right… Well… Can you tell me about… Ahkazriel?" He asked slowly.

Alastor tore his eyes off the pig and looked up at Angel

"It's an Angel," He responded flatly.

Angel nodded

"I know… With a name like that," He chuckled uneasily "I meant like… Details."

Alastor's ears pinned back and he tightened his grip on his mic

"I had a run in with it five years ago, during an extermination," He explained vaguely.

Angel pursed his lips together

"That's… All?" He muttered.

Alastor narrowed his eyes a bit

"Why?" He had a feeling he knew why.

Angel tightened his hold on Fat Nuggets a bit and shrugged

"Just… Curious," He lied nervously.

Alastor shifted closer to Angel

"Did it threaten you?"

Angel visibly tensed and slowly nodded

"I'm scared to go outside," He admitted "I mean… It said it wouldn't hurt me, but now it keeps hanging around, watching me. I don't get it!"

Alastor wrapped an arm around Angel's shoulders and hushed him softly

"Cam down," He soothed "Why did it threaten you?"

Angel sniffled and reached up to wipe his eyes

"Just didn't want me to tell anyone it was here. I think 'cause a' Charlie…" He mumbled.

Alastor lowered his gaze, so Ahkazriel was hiding from Lucifer…

"Said if I wanted to know what it would do to me, I should ask you."

Alastor went rigid and his breath hitched. Bastard Angel.

"But now it's terrorizing Val, and as much as I wish I cared more than I do, any pain and suffering inflicted on him, he's just gonna take out on me!" Angel continued to babbled, tears freely falling now.

Alastor glanced around awkwardly before carefully pulling Angel into a hug

"Okay, relax," He hushed "No one's going to hurt you."

Angel clung to Alastor, which made him tense and cringe, and sobbed into his shoulder

"I don't know what to do!" He whimpered.

Alastor gently rubbed his back

"I know. It's okay," He soothed "Everything's going to be okay."

He wasn't good at this.  _ Comforting _ people was far from his strong suit. He pulled away slightly and cupped Angel's cheeks, brushing his tears away with his thumbs

"For the moment, it would be best to keep this between you, me, and Husker, alright?" He cooed "I'll take care of it, there's no need to get Charlie involved just yet."

Angel nodded, not bothering to ask why it was okay to talk to Husk, probably just assuming Alastor had already spoken to him about the Angel.

"O-Okay. Thanks, Al," He sniffled, giving Alastor a little smile.

Alastor leaned forward and kissed Angel's forehead before standing

"Try not to worry too much, but do also avoid venturing outside for long periods of time, just to be safe," He instructed.

Angel nodded and gave Fat Nuggets a fond squeeze

"Whatever you say, Al," He agreed.

Alastor nodded and left the room. Ahkazriel had made contact with a demon very  _ clearly  _ close to Alastor in some way… So what  _ else  _ was it doing behind Alastor's back?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Al's not great at comforting, but he does his best.


	15. Feeling Blue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vox does his best to comfort Valentino.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys... I've been stuck on this damn chapter since July.

Vox leaned against the counter and sighed in frustration. Valentino hadn't left his room in days and had returned to not even answering his door. Vox looked down at his wrists and scowled before storming over to the bedroom and pounding on the door

"Open up!" He snapped "I'm gettin' sick and tired of all your damn moping!"

It was quiet for a moment before the door creaked open a crack and Valentino peaked out

"If you're so sick of it, just leave," He huffed and closed the door "You clearly don't care about me anyway!"

Vox yanked the door open and entered, shoving Valentino down onto the bed. He gasped and quickly turned over to glare at Vox

"What are you, twelve?" He scolded.

Vox snarled

"Shut up!" He spat.

Valentino immediately snapped his mouth shut and begrudgingly averted his gaze. Vox put his hands on his hips

"So you're stunted! Whatever! Something fixed Al, so we just gotta find something to fix you!" He grumbled "Stop sulking and start working."

Valentino glanced up at him

"Alastor had to literally  _ die _ to heal all the way. Took a chunk a' the city with him. So I have on pretty good authority that I'm fucking screwed," He scowled "Who knows how many demons I'd have to drain to heal. You won't give me blood, I'm not risking Velvet's life by bringing her here, and I'm not in any position to be  _ demanding _ a donor."

Vox lowered his gaze and sat down next to Valentino

"There's gotta be another way… Maybe you'll heal if we kill it?" He suggested "That would be good since we intend to kill it anyway, right?"

Valentino shrugged

"I don't get how that would help me, but yeah, we intend to kill it anyway," He muttered.

Vox sighed in frustration

"Maybe if you…-" He cut himself off and averted his gaze.

Valentino leaned over and cocked an eyebrow

"Maybe if I what?" He urged "C'mon, Vox, I'll take any suggestion at this point."

Vox squinted an eye

"Maybe if you consume some souls?" He suggested carefully "Eat some demons."

Valentino crinkled his face a bit

"Theoretically that  _ should _ help, but… Ain't no demon gonna just lie still while I eat its soul, and I'm in no condition to be forcing  _ anyone _ to do  _ anything _ ," He drawled.

Vox nodded before he perked up a bit

"What do you think would happen if you ate an Angel's soul?" He wondered "Do Angel's even have souls?"

Valentino curled in on himself a bit

"I think, in my current state, if I try to eat an Angel, I'll die," He huffed.

Vox hummed softly and wrapped an arm around Valentino's waist

"You're right… Still… It's a thought," He muttered.

Valentino winced at the touch before sighing softly and resting his head against Vox’s shoulder

“I feel awful…” He sighed softly.

Vox tightened his grip

“I’ll fix it,” He assured “I’ll figure it out, and I’ll fix it.”

It was the dumbest thing, to promise that. He didn’t know if it was even fixable, he could be promising Valentino a pipe dream. But maybe… Maybe no one needed to know…

“Ya know… I think you’re freakin’ out over nothing,” Vox stated “No one but you, me, and Angel Dust knows that you’ve been injured. And even then, Angie doesn’t know you’re stunted… And they don’t have to. No one has to find out.”

Valentino swallowed thickly before glancing up at Vox

“I think people will notice,” He grumbled.

Vox pulled away and stood, shaking his head

“Nope, no they won’t. I’ll make sure they won’t,” He assured “I’ll be here.”

Valentino let a little smile slip

“So… What? Just pretend everything’s fine?” He chuckled dejectedly.

Vox nodded

“That’s right. Don’t let that monster get you down. That’s only giving it what it wants. I’ll be with you, no one will be able to tell the difference,” He soothed.

Valentino lowered his head a bit, and Vox smirked when he blushed deeply. It didn’t happen very often, but once in a while, Vox managed to get Valentino flustered. And he treasured every single time.

“I’ll protect you, Cuddelbug.”

Valentino perked up a bit

“...Okay… But when this goes horribly wrong, I’m blaming you,” He huffed.

Vox nuzzled his cheek as best he could

“You’d do that anyway,” He snickered.

Valentino chuckled before pushing himself to his feet and getting dressed, waving a hand dismissively as he walked away, reaching up with another to cover his mouth. Vox smiled fondly at him as he got dressed. He’d never admit to it outloud, mainly because he didn’t want Valentino to deflate again, but he was a little nervous he wouldn’t be enough to keep Ahkazriel, and anyone else who wanted to hard Valentino, away. Sure, he was an Overlord, but he was just  _ one _ Overlord. And Valentino had managed to get under the skin of countless other Overlords, and Princes of Hell. His list of enemies was endless, and Vox knew he wouldn’t be enough to take it on alone, in the event Valentino’s vulnerable state was found out.

He averted his gaze and sighed softly to himself. He shouldn’t be thinking these thoughts, they were of no help to anyone. He needed to maintain the facade flawlessly. Valentino was fine. Nothing was wrong. He was still at full power. Getting Vox to deal with his problems wasn’t unusual. No one would think it was strange… The sound of the slats along Vox’s ribs opening startled him out of his thoughts.

He glanced down at himself in confusion. His heart was beating so hard it could be heard clearly now that his ‘gills’, as Velvet called them, had opened up. He didn’t understand, it wasn’t like he was doing anything physically demanding… So why was he overheating?

“Vox?” Valentino’s voice pulled him from his daze “Are you okay?”

Vox looked up at Valentino and chuckled sheepishly

“Yeah. I’m completely fine… Why do you ask?” He drawled.

Valentino cocked at eyebrow

“Because you’re smoking,” He stated flatly “And you sound like an old computer on its last leg.”

Vox blushed deeply and scoffed, averting his gaze

“I’m fucking fine… Just must be hot in here,” He grumbled.

Valentino sat down next to him, clinging to his arm and kissing his ‘cheek’. Vox slumped a bit, but his body’s strange actions didn’t cease. What the fuck was goin on anyway? Was this… Was he having a panic attack?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why did this chapter fight me so? Why?


	16. Blackmail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Husk tries to help Angel Dust with an impossible to decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When will my consistent upload schedule return from the war?

Husk yawned before slumping over the bar, bottle loosely clutched in his paw. Alastor was patrolling the perimeter of the hotel. He never left the building, and they teleported to and from work, but he kept his eyes out the windows, and on the doors. The only two he was content leaving without supervision were Vaggie and Charlie. But even Vaggie made him nervous when she ventured out alone.

“Hey, Husk,” Angel Dust greeted as he sat down, glancing around nervously.

Husk took a drink

“Hey… You good?” He asked after swallowing.

Angel bit his lip

“Al… Told me that I’m allowed to talk to you about the…-” He glanced around before leaning forward and lowering his voice to a whisper “- Ahkazriel problem…”

Husk stiffened. So Alastor had told Angel about it?... No… There was something else going on here.

“Oh yeah?” He didn’t know what else to say “Well… I don’t know if I’ll be able to help, but yeah, you can talk to me.”

Angel lowered his gaze

“What happened? Al seemed uncomfortable talking about it,” He asked.

Husk sighed and took a big drink

“I don’t know the details… Al never gave me the specifics,” He sighed “But that thing messed him up. Bad. Took him five years to get back to how you know him now, and even then… He ain’t at 100%.”

Angel’s eyes widened and his breath hitched

“A-Are you serious?” He sputtered.

Husk nodded

“Yeah… It weakened him. He’d been about as weak as a demon could get for months, and he…-” Husk cut himself off when his chest clenched.

He didn’t like to think about the fact Alastor had, technically, been erased. Sure, the Void spat him out real quick, but still.

“-... He had to die to heal all the way. And I don’t mean your typical temporary Hell death. He was completely gone. It was only about a second for me, but according to him, it’d felt like he’d been in that place for a decade at least,” He forced himself to finish.

If Angel was involved with Ahkazriel somehow, then he had a right to know what it was capable of. He glanced up when Angel whimpered, and frowned when he saw his attention glued to his phone. He looked terrified. And much like what Husk was saying wasn’t being very helpful.

“Don’t worry too much. Al did a number on that thing in return. It’s a lot weaker than it was back then,” He assured awkwardly.

Angel sniffled and nodded

“Sure... “ He muttered, still staring at his phone.

He wasn’t swiping or anything, just staring intently at something specific. Husk frowned

“Is everything alright?” He asked.

Angel looked up at Husk and bit the inside of his cheek before abruptly standing and fleeing upstairs. Husk glanced over at Alastor, who was looking outside

“Hey, Al,” He called.

Alastor looked over his shoulder at Husk

“Hmm?” He hummed.

Husk came out from behind the bar

“I'm going after Angel Dust. I think something’s wrong,” He informed “Just wanted to let you know so you don’t freak out when you turn around and I’m gone.”

Alastor’s smile softened and he approached Husk, cupping his cheeks and kissing him deeply

“Thank you for letting me know,” He sighed contently.

Husk leaned into Alastor’s touch before shaking his head and pulling away. He couldn’t get distracted. He kissed the tip of Alastor’s nose and headed upstairs after Angel.

Husk found him in his room, pacing frantically, hands roughly buried in his hair. He was clearly wrestling with something. The door was ajar, but Husk knocked anyway before entering the room. Angel looked up and sighed in relief

“Fuck! What took you so long!?” He scolded.

Husk halted

“Huh?” He gaped.

Angel quickly closed and locked his door before sitting on the bed and patting the spot next to him

“I knew you’d come after me,” He drawled before pulling his phone out.

Husk huffed before looking down at Angel’s phone just as he clicked a message from someone named ‘Nissy’. The picture that opened made Husk shudder as he read the sign a tiny, beat up spider demon was holding

‘HE WILL RECEIVE A PUNISHMENT AND YOU A PHOTO FOR EACH DAY YOU REMAIN HIDDEN’

Husk looked up at Angel

“Who-?”

“My brother,” Angel quickly cut it, rubbing his thumb over his brother’s bruised and swollen cheek in the photo.

Husk’s heart sank and looked back down at the picture

“Didn’t know you had a brother…” He commented.

Angel scoffed

“As far as he’s concerned, I don’t,” He grumbled before tossing his phone into Husk’s lap and burying his face in his hands.

Husk grabbed the phone and looked at the picture again. Angel’s brother was in a fairly barren room, of which only the corner could be seen. The room seemed to not have lights save  _ something _ bright behind the phone used to take the picture. Husk had a feeling that light was Ahkazriel. One of his tiny legs had been snapped, the bone sticking through the skin, and was laying in a pool of blood. His face had been beaten so badly his cheek was bleeding and one of his eyes had swollen completely shut. There were two deep cuts on his arm that looked to be made with either a knife or Ahkazriel’s claws. Ahazkriel had made him hold up the sign with the hastily scrawled threat on it, and he was completely bare. Ahkazriel had stripped him.

Husk didn’t understand how this thing could be called an Angel. It had gone so far out of its way,  _ hunted down _ a demon that probably hadn’t even  _ heard  _ about what it had done to Alastor, just to blackmail Angel Dust. ‘Nissy’ probably had no idea what was going on, or why he’d been captured.

“I don’t understand…” Husk muttered “Why is it coming after you?”

Angel lifted his head and shrugged

“Fuck if I know! It’s not like it knows you guys know about it, and it’s not like I told you,” He scoffed before grabbing his phone and glaring at the picture “I… I don’t know what to do.”

Husk lowered his gaze

“What’s the issue?” He asked “Maybe I can help.”

Angel ran his thumb over the picture of his brother again

“He’s my brother…” He sighed “But… I don’t want to die for him…”

Husk gently patted Angel’s knee. Angel shifted closer and leaned against him

“He doesn’t even look at me as a brother. I’m nothing but a fag to him,” He grumbled “But if I don’t do anything, that thing will erase him…”

Husk winced and squeezed Angel’s thigh

“So… What do you wanna do?” He asked.

Angel shrugged and closed the message

“I don’t know… And I don’t exactly have much time to think about it. Ahkazriel clearly wants to get me out in the open for some reason, and it’s gonna torture my brother and give me a play-by-play until I do,” He groaned.

Husk wrapped an arm around Angel’s shoulders

“Sorry I can’t be of more help,” He muttered.

Angel let a sad smile slip

“It’s fine… I don’t know what I expected you to do about it anyway, there’s nothing you can do,” He assured “I’ll need to think about what I’m gonna do…”

Husk patted Angel’s shoulder before standing with a groan

“Well… Let me know what you decide to do. I’m heading back to the bar,” He sighed before leaving the room.

He felt bad for Angel, it really was an impossible decision he was making. Husk just wished he could help in some way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep in mind that Arackniss and Angel Dust do not have a positive relationship, like, at all. Which is why Angel is so torn.  
> The blackmail pic:
> 
> [](https://ibb.co/YB1vTXz)


	17. Double Standard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Valentino realizes his and Vox's dynamic doesn't work for him in his weakened state.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This part's in Valentino's POV. I'm writing this fic as fast as I can before writer's block sets in again :P

Valentino followed Vox down to the lounge. Being around other demons  _ immediately  _ set Valentino on edge. With Vox constantly nearby, hopefully no one would notice that Valentino’s scent was different now. No one would notice he was weak.

It was difficult not to limp with his injured leg, and he was  _ way  _ too relieved when he was finally able to flop down on the couch. He sat up much straighter than normal to avoid putting pressure on his back. Liza quickly glued herself to his side, peeking up at him with her huge eyes. Valentino wrapped an arm around her waist and gently tugged on one of her pigtails. She cooed fondly and nuzzled his fluff before resting her head against his chest. She dropped a hand to stroke his thigh and Valentino went rigid

“Not today, gorgeous,” He huffed, swatting her hand away.

It was a weird feeling for him, to not be in the mood for sex. But he couldn’t risk being found out. Even by Liza. She just pouted at him but didn’t push. Vox approached at shooed her away before flopping down next to Valentino, slinking an arm around his waist. Valentino eagerly leaned against him, watching as Liza approached the bar. Once she was out of ear shot, he leaned closer to Vox

“You know, I haven’t heard from or seen Ahkazriel since what happened,” He whispered “ What about you?”

Vox hummed softly and narrowed an eye

“No… I’m actually a bit uneasy about it. Where do you think it could’ve gone?” He asked.

Valentino shrugged

“I dunno… Maybe someone killed it. Or maybe Lucifer got wind of it,” He commented.

Vox huffed and tightened his grip around Valentino’s waist

“Maybe. I’m bettin’ the  _ King’s  _ not gonna do anything to help you,” He grumbled “Despite the fact that things down here outside an extermination.”

Valentino sighed softly in defeat, glancing over at the elevator

“I wanna go back to bed,” He whimpered.

Vox winced before reaching up to playfully tug on Valentino’s healthy antenna

“No. No more bed for you. You’ve had more than enough bed,” He scolded gently “We are going to carry on with our lives.”

Valentino lowered his gaze but didn’t argue. He wasn’t an idiot, he knew his and Vox’s relationship wasn’t exactly…  _ Healthy _ , but Vox gave as good as he got, it wasn’t like he just took Valentino’s aggression lying down. For every broken screen, Valentino had received an equal amount of broken bones. And he was fine with that. He was fine with the way their relationship was… When he could take it. But  _ now _ … Valentino didn’t like being the weaker party. He didn’t like being at Vox’s mercy.

Valentino shifted and rested his head against Vox’s shoulder. He was tired. He just wanted to sleep. He gently toyed with Vox’s bowtie

“I’m tired,” He sighed.

Vox scoffed

“You’re fucking fine,” He scolded “You’ve been in bed for days.”

Valentino narrowed his eyes and sat up straight

“Oh, I see!” He snapped “So when this shit happens to Alastor, he’s allowed to mope around and do whatever the fuck he wants for months, but  _ I  _ have to act like everything is just fine!”

Liza quickly scrambled to flee the room at Valentino’s yelling. Vox flinched and averted his gaze

“It ain’t the same, babe, he was way more hurt than you are,” He muttered sheepishly.

Valentino gritted his teeth and clenched a fist. He wanted to hit Vox, he wanted to hit him so badly. He was getting sick of this bullshit with Alastor.

“I should’ve killed that little whore when I had the chance,” He snarled, shifting away from Vox and crossing his arms.

Vox snarled under his breath and stood up

“Oh, would you stop being a fucking drama queen!” He snapped “So it tore off your wings and dry humped you a bit! That ain’t the end of the fucking world!”

Valentino glanced up at Vox but refused to respond. He just curled in on himself a bit more and grumbled softly. Vox let out a frustrated sigh and rubbed the back of his neck

“I know you’re weakened, but seriously… What happened wasn’t  _ that _ bad,” He huffed “ _ You’ve  _ done a lot worse. You’re lucky.”

Valentino’s eyes widened and he flinched back like he’d been slapped. He’d been maimed, weakened, and violated, but he was  _ lucky _ ? He wanted to tell Vox to leave, tell him they were done. For good. But… He couldn’t. What would he do on his own? He’d be a quick meal for anything that wanted him… Was  _ this  _ how his employees felt? Valentino had never felt so small, and the forced empathy left a bad taste in his mouth.

He turned his head away and pressed himself into the corner of the couch, antennae pinned back as he shrunk in on himself. Vox sighed in frustration again and sat back down

“Val… I’m sorry,” He muttered “I didn’t mean that. I know you’re going through a lot.”

Valentino didn’t acknowledge him, just stayed plastered in the corner. He squeezed his eyes shut when they began to sting.  _ No. _ He would  _ not _ fucking cry again. He’d done enough crying these past few days to last him the next five centuries.

“C’mon, Precious,” Vox urged, shifting closer to Valentino and taking one of his hands “I’m sorry. Please… Talk to me.”

Valentino opened his eyes but kept his head turned

“You have no fucking idea what it was like… You haven’t actually had to deal with it yet. Whenever you come around, it takes off,” He breathed.

Valentino didn’t know why, but Ahkazriel seemed weary of Vox for some reason, or perhaps it had simply decided Vox wasn’t worth enough for its time. He didn’t get it, Vox had tortured Alastor as well, so why was it only coming after him? Was this all really just about that damn pillory?

“...Was it really that bad?” Vox finally asked “You’re right… I haven’t actually dealt with it personally yet.”

Valentino turned to look at Vox

“Have you ever seen an Angel angry? Like  _ actually  _ angry?” He huffed.

Vox shook his head

“They don’t really…  _ Emote _ when they come down for the exterminations,” He chuckled awkwardly.

Valentino lowered his gaze

“Well… Get back to me when you do,” He grumbled before turning his head away again.

An arm slinked around his waist and he visibly tensed until Vox just rested his screen against Valentino’s fluff

“You wanna go back to bed?” Vox asked softly.

Valentino slumped slightly

“Yeah…” He muttered “Are you gonna get mad at me if I do?”

Vox shook his head. Valentino pursed his lips together. He could tell Vox was still a little irritated, and he didn’t know if he wanted to be alone with him. Although, he was being surprisingly patient. 

“Promise?”

Vox lifted his head and frowned

“What’s wrong? You scared of me?” He teased, giving Valentino, what was likely supposed to be, a playful shock.

But it didn’t  _ feel  _ playful. It tore through Valentino like death by electric chair and he scrambled over the arm of the couch to escape it, letting out an undignified scream. Vox hopped to his feet

“Shit! Sorry! I didn’t mean for that to hurt!” He panicked, at Valentino’s side, where he was in a heap on the floor, in seconds “Are you okay?”

Valentino shuddered, tears streaming down his cheeks. His healthy antenna and fluff was a mess now and he was pretty sure he was smoking a bit. Vox knelt next to him, looking like a kicked puppy

“I’m  _ so  _ sorry,” He whimpered “I was just… Playin’ with you a bit…”

Valentino reached up to wipe his eyes. So much for acting like everything was fine. He could normally take those playful little zaps… Which were, apparently, not so little.

“S-Stick to static,” He stammered, his teeth hurt.

Vox pulled him into a prickly, staticy hug

“Got it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You ever accidentally electrocute your boyfriend?


	18. Hostage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahkazriel has some fun tormenting Arackniss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My friend who I bounce ideas off of wanted me to tell you guys that I got the idea for Ahkazriel and the "Angel's Cruelty" series while listening to Jonathan Young's cover of Hellfire from The Hunchback of Notre Dame:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=di1XUB0YIzw&ab_channel=JonathanYoung
> 
> I was basically listening to that cover one day and was like "hmmm... This... But an Angel that falls in Lust with Alastor during an extermination in Hell." But I also wanted to write a radiohusk story so I just rolled with it from there lol 
> 
> Anywho... Hope you like the chapter ♡

Ahkazriel watched Arackniss where he was huddled in the corner, decently abused and uselessly clutching at his broken leg. The blood pooling beneath it was getting big… Hmm. Ahkazriel approached and Arackniss quickly scurried to escape. 

“W̵h̵y̶ ̴m̶u̴s̶t̸ ̴y̴o̶u̴ ̶t̸e̷s̷t̴ ̵m̶e̵?̴” Ahkazriel snarled and grabbed Arackniss by the hair, dragging him out of the corner.

He clawed at Ahkazriel’s hand

“Stop! Let me go!” He screamed.

Ahkazriel sat down in a chair and pulled Arackniss into his lap

“E̸n̴o̴u̵g̶h̴ ̸o̶f̵ ̷y̵o̴u̵r̸ ̶s̴q̵u̷i̷r̷m̴i̸n̵g̵.̸ ̸I̶'̶m̸ ̶g̶o̴i̷n̶g̵ ̷t̶o̵ ̵b̷i̷n̴d̴ ̷y̴o̷u̵r̵ ̷l̵e̷g̸,̵ ̴s̶o̷ ̶y̸o̶u̵ ̸d̷o̸n̴'̷t̵ ̷b̶l̷e̴e̶d̸ ̸o̶u̶t̴,̴” He grumbled.

Arackniss stopped squirming, but he was still trembling as he glared at Ahkazriel out of the corner of his eye

“What? Can’t have your hostage dying on you?” He grumbled.

Ahkazriel reached down and grabbed Arackniss’ broken leg

“P̵r̸e̵c̵i̷s̶e̴l̴y̴.̴”

With that he wrapped his hand around where the break was, and the bone had poked through the skin, and clenched his fist until the bone popped back inside. Arackniss’ scream caused his breeding bits to tingle. Fabric from his robes wrapped around the wound and Ahkazriel cut it to act as a makeshift bandage

“N̸o̵w̶ ̵y̸o̸u̶ ̵w̴o̶n̴'̸t̷ ̷d̵i̴e̷ ̶o̶f̷ ̸b̵l̵o̷o̵d̷ ̵l̵o̸s̶s̶ ̶w̴h̴i̸l̴e̴ ̶I̸ ̷w̶a̸i̴t̵ ̸f̴o̴r̷ ̶T̸h̷e̶ ̴T̴e̶m̷p̸t̷e̴r̶'̵s̸ ̴p̵e̸t̴ ̶t̴o̷ ̵c̸o̴m̷e̷ ̷o̶u̵t̷ ̴a̴n̶ ̶p̶l̶a̶y̵,̷” He purred.

Arackniss didn’t respond. Ahkazriel glanced down at him. He’d completely slumped and his eyes were closed. Ahkazriel shook him as one would a ragdoll and huffed when he got no response. He figured Arackniss had passed out from the pain. He hummed to himself and dipped a hand between Arackniss thigh, rubbing against the fluff between his legs.

“W̸a̸k̶e̴ ̴u̴p̸,̴ ̴m̷y̷ ̶l̸i̸t̵t̵l̵e̴ ̷a̷r̴a̸c̷h̶n̵i̵d̸,̷” He purred, continuing to rub his fingers in that fluff.

He could feel a small slit, he figured that’s where Arackniss kept his dirty bits. He perked up a bit and pulled his hand away when Arackniss began to stir

“A̸r̵e̵ ̵y̷o̸u̶ ̴a̷w̶a̵k̶e̸?̷” He asked, cording his fingers through Arackniss’ fur.

“Huh… Uh… Fuck,” Arackniss sputtered, reaching up to grab his head “What happened?”

“Y̵o̴u̸ ̶l̷o̷s̵t̵ ̸c̵o̴n̷s̴c̸i̸o̵u̸s̶n̷e̶s̸s̷ ̷d̷u̶e̵ ̸t̴o̶ ̸t̶h̷e̷ ̴p̷a̷i̵n̷ ̴o̶f̴ ̸m̷e̴n̵d̷i̶n̵g̵ ̵y̴o̶u̶r̵ ̷l̶e̵g̴,̵” Ahkazriel explained flatley, ruffling the fur on Arackniss’ chest.

Arackniss glanced down at the touch and crinkled his face a bit but didn’t comment.

“My leg really hurts…” He mumbled, peeking up at Ahkazriel “Can… Can you give me something for the pain?”

Ahkazriel cocked his eyebrow in amusement. Was a demon, in  _ Hell _ , really requesting to have his suffering eased?

“Y̴o̶u̴ ̷a̶r̶e̸ ̶i̷n̷ ̸H̷e̴l̸l̷,̵ ̷l̵i̷t̴t̴l̶e̷ ̶t̸h̷i̵n̷g̵,̵ ̷y̴o̶u̵ ̴a̴r̸e̴ ̵s̸u̸p̷p̵o̸s̷e̶d̵ ̶t̶o̶ ̷b̷e̷ ̴i̴n̸ ̶p̸a̴i̷n̴,̶” He reminded.

Arackniss lowered his gaze and crossed his arms

“Yeah, I’m in Hell. So how come I’m sittin’ in an  _ Angel’s  _ lap right now?” He scoffed.

Ahkazriel blinked in surprise, genuinely taken aback by that attitude. A sick, sadistic grin split his features, he  _ really  _ hoped Angel Dust would take his time deciding what to do, because he  _ really  _ wanted to have some fun with this sassy little demon. It would bring him  _ immense  _ satisfaction to destroy that attitude… Then again, Ahkazriel had simply said that Arackniss would receive a punishment for each day Angel Dust kept himself hidden away, he’d never said he’d let Arackniss go once he got what he wanted.

“W-What’s with that creepy grin?” Arackniss stammered.

Ahkazriel glanced down at him and continued to pet his soft fur

“J̶u̶s̶t̵ ̵a̷ ̷t̵h̸o̶u̷g̷h̵t̷.̶ ̸Y̶o̸u̴ ̵r̵e̷a̸l̸l̷y̶ ̴a̴r̶e̵ ̴a̸m̴u̴s̶i̴n̴g̵ ̷c̴o̴m̴p̶a̸n̷y̸,̶” He purred.

Arackniss averted his gaze and shrugged, wincing slightly before reaching down to clutch at his leg. He peeked back up at Ahkazriel

“Is there anythin’ I can do to convince you to give me somethin’ for the pain?” He asked sweetly, batting his eyes.

Ahkazriel didn’t understand what his game was here. The… Cutesy thing he was pulling. But he liked it, so he wasn’t complaining. And it was an interesting query.  _ Was  _ there anything he could do to convince Ahkazriel to take his pain away?

“P̶e̴r̷h̴a̵p̴s̷.̷ ̸T̸h̴a̵t̴ ̷w̵o̶u̴l̸d̴ ̷d̵e̸p̶e̸n̵d̴ ̵o̵n̷ ̷w̴h̵a̴t̶ ̴y̴o̴u̷ ̴h̵a̷d̸ ̸i̵n̵ ̵m̶i̵n̵d̵,̵” He said, completely devoid of emotion.

Arackniss pushed himself up a bit so he was sitting a little straighter

“Maybe I can help… With whatever it is you’re getting up to down here?” He offered.

Ahkazriel hooded his eye

“N̸o̷.̶ ̸I̶ ̷d̶o̷n̴'̶t̵ ̷r̶e̸q̷u̷i̷r̸e̸ ̸a̸s̴s̶i̸s̴t̸a̵n̶c̴e̴,̸” He purred, slipping a hand between Arackniss thighs again to feel his sheath, causing the tiny demon to go rigid “I̷,̶ ̵h̴o̶w̷e̷v̷e̸r̶,̷ ̸h̴a̴v̸e̴ ̴s̷o̸m̷e̵t̷h̵i̵n̷g̵ ̶a̷ ̸l̵i̵t̶t̶l̸e̸ ̸m̸o̶r̵e̷.̴.̸.̶  _ ̷I̷n̴v̶o̶l̷v̶i̶n̶g̷ _ ̶i̷n̴ ̷m̶i̵n̴d̸.̶”

Arackniss swallowed thickly and began to tremble again. There was fire in his eyes that implied he desperately wanted to fight back, but he seemed a touch more intelligent than the common riff-raff of Hell, and therefore was not dump enough to attempt to take on a Throne, while injured and alone.

“O-Oh yeah? And here I was under the impression being gay was a sin,” He grumbled.

Ahkazriel’s touches halted and he cocked his eyebrow again

“W̷e̵l̶l̵ ̸i̴t̷ ̶i̷s̴n̷'̶t̵,̸” He stated bluntly before resuming his exploration of Arackniss’ curious little body.

He pressed a finger into Arackniss’ sheath and his eye darkened at his agonizing sob. Arackniss grabbed at Ahkazriel’s wrist

“Hey! N-Nothing’s supposed to go  _ in  _ there!” He snapped “Stop!”

Ahkazriel grinned and pressed his finger in deeper, digging his claw into the sensitive flesh. Arackniss moaned in pain and tried to close his legs

“Please!” He begged.

Ahkazriel slowly retracted his finger and looked at the blood trickling down his hand before raising it to Arackniss’ mouth

“C̸l̴e̴a̷n̷ ̵i̵t̸,̸” He ordered.

Arackniss just shot him a disgusted look

“Are you fucking kidding me!?” He snapped, quickly closing his legs and turning his head away “No!”

Ahkazriel shuddered as his breeding parts tingled at Arackniss’ refusal. He tangled his hand in Arackniss’ hair and yanked his head back

“P̶l̴a̸y̴ ̸n̶i̸c̴e̶l̷y̸,̷ ̵o̵r̶ ̸I̷'̶l̸l̸ ̵b̵e̸ ̵a̴d̴d̴i̷n̵g̵ ̵t̴o̷ ̴y̷o̶u̶r̶ ̴p̸a̴i̵n̸,̷” He warned.

Arackniss grabbed at Ahkazriel’s hand and glared at him

“You’re gonna do that anyway!” He snarled.

Ahkazriel couldn’t help but chuckle before perking up when Arackniss’ cell phone went off. He dropped the spider off his lap, ignoring how he cried out when his injured leg hit the floor, and grabbed the phone, opening the message from ‘Anthony’

> _ He ain’t my problem. _

Arousal shot through Ahkazriel and his breeding parts stiffened between his legs. He turned towards Arackniss and showed him the message

“I̶t̶ ̴w̸o̸u̶l̷d̶ ̷a̴p̷p̷e̸a̴r̵ ̸y̷o̸u̶ ̴a̸r̷e̴ ̸n̷o̸t̷ ̵p̸a̷r̸t̵i̷c̴u̷l̸a̶r̶l̴y̵ ̷c̸a̵r̵e̴d̷ ̸f̵o̶r̵,̶” He commented before looking at the message again “H̵o̴w̴ ̸u̸n̵f̵o̶r̸t̵u̸n̴a̷t̴e̴ ̷f̶o̵r̶ ̵y̷o̷u̷.̸”

Arackniss swallowed thickly and he attempted to scramble away from Ahkazriel

“N-No, please,” He begged, tears welling up in his eyes.

Ahkazriel set the phone up to record. He’d said Angel Dust would receive a photo for each day Ahkazriel’s request was ignored, but he hadn’t specified what would be done were his request to be refused. He pressed the record button and turned to look at Arackniss

“D̴o̶ ̸t̶r̵y̵ ̴n̵o̶t̶ ̸t̴o̵ ̴b̵l̶a̸m̷e̶ ̷m̵e̶.̴ ̴Y̷o̵u̷'̴r̵e̶ ̶b̷r̴o̶t̴h̸e̶r̷ ̴i̶s̷ ̶t̷o̸ ̵b̷l̸a̵m̴e̷ ̶f̴o̷r̶ ̴n̶e̴g̴l̶e̶c̸t̴i̷n̷g̶ ̵y̵o̷u̷r̸ ̷p̵l̸i̸g̶h̵t̸,̵” He purred, his robes retracting off his legs to expose his breeding bits.

Arackniss’ eyes widened and he squeaked in fear. Ahkazriel glanced between Arackniss and his breeding parts. It wouldn’t fit. There was no way it would fit, not without ripping the tiny demon in half. Still… He wanted to play a bit. Arackniss pushed himself up on his one good leg. His balance was not good. Ahkazriel offered his leg for Arackniss to lean on. He had no choice but to take the offer if he wanted to remain upright

“C-C’mon,” He stammered “You can’t be serious… Th-That’ll  _ never  _ fit…”

Ahkazriel smirked as he split the stitches on his chest and his body opened up, leaving behind a gaping hole surrounded by sharp teeth. A long, squirming tentacle-like tongue emerged from the depths of this gaping maw. Arackniss flinched as it licked across his cheek. He hissed as Ahkazriel’s saliva burned his cheek like acid

“That’s bigger,” He huffed.

Ahkazriel snickered

“ _ T̴h̴i̷s̴ _ ̸w̴i̵l̶l̸ ̵n̸o̶t̶ ̷b̸e̴ ̶e̴n̶t̴e̴r̴i̸n̵g̸ ̷y̵o̷u̷r̶ ̴b̶o̶d̷y̷,̸ ̸s̵i̷l̷l̶y̶,̸” He teased.

Arackniss swallowed thickly

“What? You gonna eat me?” He drawled.

All Ahkazriel’s eyes locked on Arackniss, who shrunk under the predatory gaze

“W̷h̵y̷.̷.̷.̶ ̶Y̵e̷s̶.̵.̵.̸ ̸T̷h̷a̵t̶ ̴w̵a̷s̴ ̵i̸n̷d̶e̸e̷d̶ ̴t̵h̵e̸ ̸i̸n̴t̸e̸n̶t̶i̶o̸n̴.̵.̷.̴ ̴E̷v̵e̸n̷t̴u̴a̴l̸l̶y̴” He laughed, his massive tongue slipping between Arackniss’ legs as he spoke “B̷u̵t̶ ̶f̷i̶r̴s̷t̷ ̴I̸ ̵i̴n̷t̷e̵n̶d̸ ̸t̴o̷ ̸h̷a̶v̶e̵ ̵a̷ ̷b̸i̷t̴ ̴o̴f̶ ̸f̶u̸n̴.̵.̷.̷ ̶A̷n̸d̸ ̷a̷f̸t̸e̸r̵ ̴m̸y̶ ̶d̴e̷a̸r̷ ̴Angel Dust ̷s̷e̵e̴s̴ ̵m̴e̶ ̸h̵a̶v̶e̶ ̴m̵y̴ ̷f̷u̴n̴-̸” He turned his gaze on the camera of the phone, causing the image to massively glitch out around his maimed halo “-̵̹͒P̶̞̉ȅ̸͓r̶̼̎ȟ̶̞a̶̘͘p̷͍͊ş̷̌ ̴̹̀h̶̡̛e̶̝͐ ̷̖̑c̶̗̎a̵̧͝n̶̻ ̴̬̽c̸͈ŏ̸ͅn̸̪̕v̸̳̇ȋ̵̘n̷͍͋c̷͕͗ḛ̵͒ ̸̰͛m̵͓̑ȇ̸͔ ̸͔̓y̴͉͛o̸̥̍u̷̦̕'̵̲̃r̴̲̈́e̵̎͜ ̷͉m̶̯̋ö̸̞r̷̮̃ȩ̵̅ ̸̼͗ṭ̶̐h̵̝͑a̵̲͐t̸̗͝ ̵̛̙j̷͖̅u̷̝͛s̷̮͘t̸͈͆ ̴̘̌ã̸͓ ̷̡̋m̴̱͆e̵̱͊a̴̤̔l̷̪̓.̵̠̇”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a general size difference and anatomy sheet for Arackniss and Ahkazriel, just to give you guys a general idea of how horrifying Ahkazriel is:
> 
> [](https://ibb.co/W3MpSzf)  
> 
> 
> Hope you liked the story, and sorry it's just a sketch, my hands were starting to get sore, I hope you like it anyway, I'm super proud of it :)
> 
> Also! The next chapter will be in Arackniss' POV.


	19. Mind Break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arackniss experiences Ahkazriel's unique brand of sadism.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a graphic chapter.

Arackniss had managed to crawl into a corner in a sad attempt to escape the Lovecraftian horror that called itself an Angel. He only stood up to about its knee and the squirming spiked tentacle it probably called a cock was easily the same length and girth of Arackniss’ torso. The tongue lashing about from the depths of Ahkazriel’s gaping chest was even bigger still. He’d be monumentally pissed at Angel Dust for leaving him like he had, were any other emotions not drowned out by the gut-wrenching fear of what this thing intended to do to him.

“Y̸o̸u̷ ̵c̵a̶n̶'̸t̷ ̶h̵i̴d̴e̶ ̶f̶r̴o̸m̴ ̶m̵e̸,̵ ̶y̵o̶u̴ ̶k̷n̴o̴w̵,̸” Ahkazriel teased as it approached.

Arackniss yelped and quickly ducked under its arms as it reached for him, but he didn’t get very far. As soon as he put his injured leg down, he collapsed in pain. His legs were just too tiny to hold him up on just one. He scrambled away as best he could and flipped himself over onto his back, sitting up

“P-Please,” He whimpered.

Fuck… He couldn’t even look directly at this damn thing without his eyes burning. He averted his gaze, unable to stop himself from trembling

“I… I haven’t done anything!” He snapped.

Ahkazriel halted in its advance

“Y̷o̴u̶'̴r̵e̷ ̸i̷n̵ ̷H̵e̶l̶l̶.̴.̴.̴ ̷Y̷o̵u̷ ̵h̷a̸d̸ ̴t̶o̷ ̶h̵a̵v̷e̸ ̴d̴o̶n̸e̸ ̷ _ s̶o̴m̵e̶t̴h̸i̸n̶g̶ _ ,̸ ̸o̶r̴ ̶y̵o̶u̴ ̶w̵o̵u̴l̷d̸ ̵n̷o̵t̷ ̴b̴e̷ ̵h̷e̶r̵e̵,̵” It reminded spitefully.

Arackniss stiffened and he snarled softly at Ahkazriel

“Well yeah, but ain’t  _ that _ what the experminations are for! I mean I ain’t done anything to you!” He scowled.

Ahkazriel tilted its head

“N̵o̴.̶ ̷Y̸o̷u̶ ̷h̸a̷v̴e̶n̶'̴t̷.̵ ̷B̷u̴t̴ Angel Dust r̷e̸f̶u̶s̸e̶d̵ ̴m̴y̵ ̸r̷e̶q̶u̷e̶s̴t̷.̶ ̷H̸e̶ ̸n̵e̸e̵d̶s̴ ̸t̴o̸ ̵l̶e̷a̸r̵n̶ ̶n̴o̵t̸ ̷t̴o̵ ̷d̸o̶ ̵t̸h̷a̵t̶,̴” It said flatly.

Arackniss gritted his teeth together

“Well  _ I  _ coulda told you that!” He yelled “We ain’t exactly on good terms!”

Ahkazriel ran his massive tongue up Arackniss’ thigh, causing him to squirm and shift back

“I̵r̶r̶e̷l̸e̸v̶a̸n̵t̷,̵” It purred, plucking Arackniss up and cradling him in its lap as it floated into the air, in a sort of sitting position.

Arackniss instinctively dug his nails into Ahkazriel’s legs before going rigid when the tongue slipped between his thighs and wriggled against his sheath again. He bit his lip to keep from making sounds and squeezed his eyes shut. Ahkazriel put it’s palms flat against Arackniss’ temples, the tongues from the mouths that resided there licked at him curiously and he couldn’t help but shudder. He took shallow breaths as he tried to think of anything else before his breath hitched when he felt a strange presence worming around in his mind.

“M̵m̸m̵.̵.̴.̷ ̵O̸h̸.̷.̴.̵ ̴I̴ ̶s̴e̴e̸ ̷n̸o̷w̶,̴” Ahkazriel’s tone was euphoric as it spoke, digging around in Arackniss’ memories.

Arackniss immediately began to squirm in Ahkazriel’s hold

“Stop!” He screamed “Get the fuck out of my head!”

There were memories, things that he’d done and that had been done to him that  _ no one  _ knew about, and he intended to keep it that way. Ahkazriel just wrapped a massive arm around Arackniss’ tiny waist, and his fight pretty well ended there. He could kick, claw, and scream all he wanted, but the enormous marble statue holding him tight wouldn’t be budging anytime soon.

The world just melted away around him and he slumped in Ahkazriel’s hold as his worst memories were brought to life around him.

_ Arackniss opened his eyes and blinked slowly in confusion. He was… Home. Not in Hell. He was alive. He glanced around the room before looking down at himself. He was sixteen maybe… Yeah… That sounded about right. _

_ A door slammed closed and he flinched before quickly turning towards the noise. He swallowed thickly before approaching the door to the room he was in and opening it a crack to peek outside. His eyes locked on Angel Dust… Anthony… Before darting up to his dad. He was yelling. Anthony was bleeding, his lips split, and a nasty black eye. He was curled up in the corner of the room, shielding himself with his arms as he uselessly pleaded for his father to stop. He wouldn’t. He never did. _

_ The room shifted in a way that gave Arackniss horrible motion sickness. And now he was lying in bed. He squeezed his eyes shut. _

_ “It’s not real… It’s not real…” He mumbled to himself. _

**_O̸h̸,̷ ̷b̵u̷t̵ ̶i̴t̴ ̸i̵s̸,̴ ̷p̶e̸t̶.̴ ̵I̸t̴'̴s̶ ̵_ ** **_y̴o̴u̴r̶_ ** **_̴m̴e̸m̴o̶r̸y̷.̸_ **

_ Arackniss tried to shrink away from the voice, reaching up to cover his ears. He flinched when the bedroom door opened, followed by heavy footsteps. The bed dipped where someone sat at the edge. A big, calloused hand ran up his back as someone exhaled, smoke coiling around Arackniss’ body. He was shaking now. _

_ “No, no, no… Please,” He begged under his breath. _

_ He didn’t want to experience this again. He gasped and his eyes shot open when pleasure erupted in his groin. The bed creaked as someone lied down behind Arackniss, wrapping massive arms around him and nuzzling the back of his neck _

_ “Torna a dormire, Amedeo,” A deep, gruff voice purred next to his ear. _

_ Tears welled up in Arackniss’ eyes and he cried out softly when one of those big hands pressed against his crotch, doubling the pleasure he already felt. He didn’t understand what was happening. It was all so much. _

_ Something big, and hard pressed into the small of his back and whimpered helplessly. He knew who was pressed against his back. Of course he knew. And it killed him to admit to it. _

**_I̵ ̴d̷o̷ ̷b̷e̵l̶i̷e̷v̶e̴ ̵I̴'̴m̸ ̶b̶e̵g̵i̵n̷n̷i̷n̸g̸ ̷t̴o̸ ̵n̶o̸t̶i̶c̶e̴ ̷a̴ ̷p̶a̶t̸t̵e̴r̶n̵ ̶w̸i̴t̵h̴ ̷y̵o̶u̷ ̶s̶i̶n̷n̵e̵r̷s̵.̶_ **

_ Arackniss didn’t even want to know what that meant. He was violently pulled back to his memory by a hand pressing his underwear down. Arackniss quickly gripped that offending wrist… Or at least… He’d meant to. His mind was screaming at his body to move. Do something! Anything! But he didn’t… Because he hadn’t _

_ A cock, far too big for his teenage body, pressed against the cleft of his ass as a suspiciously wet finger rubbed his hole. Arackniss squeezed his eyes closed _

_ “No... papà... per favore…” He whispered against his will. _

_ “Silenzio, ragazzo. Va 'a dormire.” _

_ Arackniss snapped his mouth shut and he sniffled as tears streamed down his cheek. He was breached and a hand covered his mouth before he could scream… It didn’t hurt though… It was supposed to hurt. He remembered it hurting. But it didn’t. He moaned, eyes rolling back from the intense pleasure. But it hadn’t felt good. He knew that! _

**_B̸u̵t̴ ̴i̵t̷ ̵d̷o̴e̷s̵ ̸_ ** **_n̴o̷w̵.̴_ **

_ Arackniss squeezed his eyes shut. This was all wrong. It felt awful. He tensed when teeth nicked against the skin of his neck as the finger picked up its pace. It brushed his prostate and Arackniss moaned. _

_ “Ti piace?” The voice sounded angry. _

_ And it had been. He had moaned when the finger teased his prostate. It had felt good and he’d felt absolutely disgusting. The hand covering his mouth dropped to wrap around his throat and squeezed _

_ “Sei un frocio come Anthony?” _

_ Arackniss stiffened and frantically shook his head _

_ “No!” He squeaked before shrinking in on himself again “Mi dispiace.” _

_ The finger pressed hard against his prostate and he bit his lip so hard he drew blood to keep quiet. Fuck… He was getting hard. He tried to think of something else, but nothing was worse than what was happening, and he was still getting hard. _

_ “Per favore, per favore, per favore,” He rambled. _

_ The hand around his throat tightened until his air was completely cut off, the finger continuing to work him open _

_ “Stai zitto!” Henroin… Henry… Snapped. _

_ Arackniss clawed at the hand around his throat and squirmed in his father's grip as he fruitlessly gasped for air. _

“Please,” He squeaked out loud, pawing at Ahkazriel’s hand “N-No more.”

Tears streamed down his cheek as that massive tongue coiled around his erection, tiny by comparison. Ahkazriel snickered

“W̴h̵y̶?̸ ̶Y̵o̸u̶'̶r̶e̸ ̴h̵a̶v̴i̵n̵g̶ ̸s̸o̶ ̷m̵u̷c̸h̸ ̷f̸u̷n̷,̴” It mocked, tip of its huge tongue dipping into Arackniss’ urethra.

Arackniss shuddered and sluggishly shook his head

“No… Please… I d-don’t wanna think about it,” He begged.

Ahkazriel just laughed and forced Arackniss back into the memory.

_ Searing hot pain tore through Arackniss’ lower body as a massive erection pressed into him. He couldn’t hold his scream, but his mouth was quickly covered again. He took the chance to take in big gulps of breath, with great difficulty, since the pain was knocking the breath out of him faster than he could take it in. He reached back and pushed on his father’s hips _

_ “Fermare! Per favore ... fa male!” He sobbed. _

_ His earlobe was nipped before a kiss pressed against his jaw _

_ “Dovrebbe,” Henry purred. _

_ Arackniss choked on a sob and buried his face in the pillows as his father rutted into him. The pleasure bloomed in his groin again. A distant feeling, like… It was coming from outside the memory. _

_ “Se ti fa sentire bene, significa che ti piace.” _

_ Arackniss went rigid at those words, tears streaming from his eyes as they went blank. Heat was pooling in his groin and he knew he was close. _

“Stop!” Arackniss shrieked, clawing at Ahkazriel’s arms “P-Please don’t!”

He was fighting as hard as he could, what was easily his worst memory still alive around him, that massive tongue writhing against his shaft. He wasn’t sure when Ahkazriel had started fingering him, but the constant stimulation to his prostate was just too much to take. He threw his head back, letting out a broken moan as an unwanted orgasm ripped through him. He slumped in Ahkazriel’s grip, eyes going completely blank.

Ahkazriel had made him cum to the memory of his father ‘making sure he wasn’t a fag’, as Henroin had worded it. That had been the only thing protecting him from that memory, was that he’d hated the experience. It had hurt, he’d hated it, and, therefore, couldn’t be… Ahkazriel had stolen that from him… And he couldn’t stop thinking about what Henroin would think of him now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you guys haven't noticed, Ahkazriel has a thing for torturing with pleasure.


	20. Shadow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alastor is forced to disclose what Ahkazriel did to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's some soft Vaggie/Alastor friendship in this chapter.

Alastor was lounging at the bar now, just staring fondly at Husk as he cleaned a glass. Husk glanced up from what he was doing, going stiff when he caught Alastor staring

“What?” He huffed.

Alastor’s grin widened

“I can’t look at my boyfriend?” He teased.

Husk scoffed and averted his gaze, blushing deeply. He didn’t like that term. They weren’t kids.

“Uhg, don’t call me your ‘boyfriend’,” He drawled “What are we, six?”

Alastor laughed before resting his chin in his hand where his elbow rested atop the bar

“What would you prefer I call you?” He hummed “I’d call you my ‘husband’, but we’re not married.”

Husk’s blush deepened at that and he nearly dropped the glass he was cleaning before shooting Alastor a glare

“Don’t say shit like that!” He scolded.

Alastor covered his mouth and giggled, opening his mouth to retort before quickly snapping it shut when Angel Dust sat down next to him, looking absolutely horrified. His phone was clutched loosely in his hand as he stared off into nothing. Husk put the glass down and leaned forward, waving a paw in Angel’s face. Alastor tilted his head in confusion

“Angel?” He asked “Are you alright?”

Angel didn’t respond. Husk frowned in concern and gently shook Angel by the shoulder

“Oi, legs, you okay?” He called.

Angel Dust blinked slowly before letting out a shaky breath

“I’ve… Made a terrible mistake,” He whimpered.

Alastor grabbed Angel by the arm and dragged him into the storage closet behind the bar, Husk following after them. It was tight, but whatever.

“Tell me what happened,” He demanded.

Angel shakily handed his phone to Husk

"A-Ahkazriel sent me this when I refused to meet his demands," He whimpered.

Husk swiped the phone. Alastor peeked over his shoulder at the video shown on the screen. Husk pressed play.

“D̴o̶ ̸t̶r̵y̵ ̴n̵o̶t̶ ̸t̴o̵ ̴b̵l̶a̸m̷e̶ ̷m̵e̶.̴ ̴Y̷o̵u̷'̴r̵e̶ ̶b̷r̴o̶t̴h̸e̶r̷ ̴i̶s̷ ̶t̷o̸ ̵b̷l̸a̵m̴e̷ ̶f̴o̷r̶ ̴n̶e̴g̴l̶e̶c̸t̴i̷n̷g̶ ̵y̵o̷u̷r̸ ̷p̵l̸i̸g̶h̵t̸,̵” Ahkazriel purred on the video as his robes melted into his flesh to expose his enormous, writhing tentacle-cock.

Alastor went rigid at the sight of it, slapping the phone out of Husk's hands and fleeing the closet. He sat down on one of the couches in the lobby, hyperventilating as the horrors Ahkazriel had subjected him to came to life around him. And he was screaming.

"Al-" Husk's voice cut off when someone knelt down.

Alastor blinked and glanced up to whoever had knelt in front of him

"Hey, easy. You're okay," Vaggie soothed, looking deeply concerned "What's wrong, Al? Are you hurt?"

Charlie was right behind her, looking horribly worried. Alastor's breathing slowed as he glanced between the girls. He flinched slightly when tiny arms wrapped around one of his and he glanced over at Niffty

"Please don't cry," She soothed, reaching up to wipe away his tears.

Vaggie raised her hand to touch his thigh but paused

"May I?" She asked.

Alastor sniffled and nodded. Vaggie smiled softly and squeezed his thigh

"You're okay," She soothed.

Alastor took a deep breath, exhaling shakily

"I'm very sorry, ladies," He whispered "I didn't mean to disturb you…"

Charlie gasped softly and Vaggie shook her head

"You don't have to apologize," They said in unison.

Angel Dust approached nervously

"I'm sorry Al… I had no idea you'd-" He cut himself off and averted his gaze.

Alastor buried his face in his hands in shame. Husk approached and sat next to him, taking one of his hands on putting it to the nape of his wings

"Are you feeling a bit better, Sweetheart?" He worried.

Alastor gripped the fur and the feathers, sniffling softly

"I'm here… So… Yes," He assured. 

Vaggie looked up at Husk

"What happened?" She asked.

Alastor stiffened

"It was nothing!" He cut in before Husk could answer "It won't happen again."

Charlie lowered her hands from her mouth

"But Al-"

"Okay. Whatever you say," Vaggie agreed while standing up.

Charlie gave her a look. Vaggie approached her

"If he doesn't want to talk about it, we shouldn't make him," She soothed.

Charlie sighed before smiling at her

"Okay. We'll be here if you ever  _ do  _ want to talk. Okay, Al?" She chirped.

Alastor's eyes widened a fraction and he blushed. He cleared his throat and quickly righted himself

"Yes, yes, dear. As you were," He cooed, waving a hand dismissively. 

Vaggie smirked before leading Charlie away, asking her something about the hotel, which immediately launched the passionate princess into excited rambling. Niffty smiled as she watched them leave before looking pointedly up at Alastor

"You can hide stuff from them, but don't hide things from me!" She scolded "What's going on?"

Alastor deflated slightly and bit his lip, smile faltering just a bit. Husk nuzzled his cheek

"It's okay, sweetheart, you can talk about it," He assured.

Alastor bit so hard he drew blood. Angel knelt in front of him, staring up at him with pleading eyes

"Please, Alastor, I need to know what that thing is capable of," He begged "It's got my brother…"

Alastor took a deep breath and sighed

"It's taken everything else from me and now it's even going to take my choice of when I decide to talk about what it did to me," He said flatly, eyes narrowing dangerously "But… Okay. I'll tell you… It was five years ago-"

-Alastor was afraid to look up by the time he'd finished telling them the full story. What Ahkazriel had done to him, in detail. The brief fight after the torture when Ahkazriel had blown a hole in Alastor's side, and Alastor had, in turn, blown one in Ahkazriel's face.

Seeking refuge at Husk's old house, Vox finding out about his plight, Valentino finding out about his plight and taking him hostage. Everything Valentino had done to him. The Pillory.

The deal with Vox, sleeping with Vox for his blood, and then accidentally draining him dry. Staying huddled up to Vox's corpse for three days for fear of Valentino's punishment, were he to find out what happened.

Husk drinking Rosie's blood and rescuing Alastor with Ahkazriel's blade, which had become lodged behind a dumpster in the explosion. Husk managing to single-handedly take down an Overlord; Alastor put emphasis on this part, making Husk all flustered.

Draining Valentino dry; Angel Dust remarked he remembered returning to the studio to find Valentino dead, and how he'd had mixed feelings at the time. Alastor told him he was a good person for even having  _ mixed  _ feelings about the matter, instead of just being ecstatic.

He skipped over what drinking Valentino’s blood had done to him, and went straight to his meeting with Rosie. Then the altercation with the demon whose car Husk had stolen. The void out.

The Void. Alastor didn’t go into much detail about that. Didn’t even mention Pidge. Talking about that thing made Alastor uneasy in ways Ahkazriel could only hope to achieve.

Angel Dust and Niffty were silent now, just taking it all in. Alastor felt raw and vulnerable. Like he was naked. He just wanted to go home, cuddle with Husk, and cry. For a few days. After that he’d be content  _ never  _ talking about this again.

Angel was staring at the floor, eyes wide in horror

“...Niss…” He breathed after a long moment of processing.

Alastor glanced down at him

“I’m sorry about your brother,” He mumbled “Without… Showing me… Could you describe what it did to him?”

Angel Dust winced and looked down at his phone

“I… I don’t really know. From  _ my  _ perspective, it looks like it’s just getting him off, but… He certainly doesn't seem to be having a good time,” He explained.

Alastor uneasily took Angel’s phone from him and passed it to Husk, who just chuckled and shook his head before taking it. He wrapped an arm around Alastor’s shoulder but tucked his wings tight against his back before pressing play.

Alastor had trouble keeping his eyes on the screen, and Husk didn’t push him to. It wasn’t until Ahkazriel had maneuvered Arackniss into his lap and pressed his palms to his temples that Alastor’s focus locked onto the video. He knew that stance. He could still feel the tongues emerging from the mouths on Ahkazriel’s palms licking at his own temples as his mind was violated.

“Stop!” Arackniss screamed on the video “Get the fuck out of my head!”

Not a moment after his demand, he slumped in Ahkazriel’s hold.

He didn’t move much after that, beyond some slight shifting and squirming. But he was muttering.

“It’s not real… It’s not real,” He whispered, barely audible on the video.

Ahkazriel smirked deviously

“O̴h̴,̸ ̷b̴u̷t̷ ̵i̶t̸ ̷i̶s̵,̶ ̵p̷e̸t̵.̸ ̸I̵t̴'̷s̶ ̶y̶o̴u̷r̵ ̸m̷e̶m̷o̶r̵y̵,̷” He snickered.

Arackniss flinched at that and tears welled up in his eyes, but he was still fully under Ahkazriel’s control.

“No, no, no… Please,” He pleaded brokenly, arms shifting a bit as he squirmed in Akazriel’s grip.

Arackniss stiffened and gasped when Ahkazriel’s massive tongue began to squirm and writhe between his legs.

Alastor tore his eyes off the video and buried his face in his hands, whimpering inaudibly. Husk paused the video and set Angel’s phone aside

“It’s okay, you’re alright,” He soothed, nuzzling Alastor’s cheek.

Angel Dust stood and grabbed his phone

“What is it? What did it do to him?” He worried.

Alastor sniffled and peeked up at Angel

“It digs through your mind, to find your worst memory, and it tortures you with it,” He explained softly “It forces you to relive the memory while it-”

He cuts himself off and squeezed his eyes shut. He refused to think about what had happened. Ahkazriel had gotten him off to the memory of his father raping him so many times, that just thinking about that horrible experience got him hard now. And that was the worst part. His body’s response to such a horrible thing. It made him feel disgusting and worthless. A feeling he, no doubt, now shared with Angel Dust’s brother.

“Don’t worry, Angel,” He soothed once he’d regained his composure “I’ll help you get him back.”

Angel’s eyes widened and he let out a breathy laugh in relief

“R-Really?” He couldn’t stop himself from throwing a hug around Alastor, who crinkled his nose and tensed but otherwise didn’t object “Thank you!”

Alastor awkwardly patted Angel’s back

“I know exactly what Ahkazriel has put him through, and it’s cruel. No one deserves that…” He explained.

Angel blushed and pulled away

“S-So, what do we do?” He stammered.

Alastor knitted his brows together in thought. He, honestly, didn’t know. He had no idea where Ahkazriel was holding Arackniss, and they didn’t really know what he wanted with Angel Dust. He glanced over at Husk, lips pursed together. Husk sighed softly in defeat

“Seems to us that the only way to get Ahkazriel to show itself, is by giving it what it wants,” He muttered.

Angel winced before averting his gaze

“Yeah… I know… I was just hoping you guys could come up with somethin’ else,” He grumbled.

Niffty slid off the couch and looked up at Alastor

“Isn’t there anyway we could track him? I don’t want him going out there all by himself,” She suggested.

Alastor perked up, grin widening

“You’re a brilliant little devil, Niffty,” He praised as he shadow popped up from under the couch.

Angel flinched away from it before winking at it. It spun around him before morphing into Angel’s shadow. Alastor stood

“There we are. I’ll be with you, every step of the way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be in Angel Dust's POV.


	21. Brothers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angel Dust gives himself up to Ahkazriel for Arackniss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the updated POV schedule: 
> 
> Husk - Valentino - Ahkazriel - Arackniss - Alastor - Angel Dust - Vox
> 
> With that being said, Arackniss won't be having a POV for a while, and you'll see why. Hope you enjoy the chapter.

Angel Dust let out a shaky breath as he made his way down a street of the city. He’d texted Arackniss’ phone, agreeing to Ahkazriel’s terms, and all he’d gotten in response were coordinates. Where he was now heading.

He was terrified, and every demon on the street could tell. Luckily, no one made a move. He entered an old, abandoned building and froze, cringing at the sight of a sagging crocodile demon. It was clearly a pelt. Angel Swallowed thickly and straightened his back

“Ya know, no one’s gonna fall for that. It’s hanging off of ya,” He mocked.

The pelt was dropped and Angel had to cover his eyes so Ahkazriel’s sudden holy light didn’t blind him.

“I̷'̶m̵ ̸g̸l̷a̷d̴ ̶y̸o̴u̶ ̴c̸a̴m̴e̴,̶” It purred “I̵'̵d̶ ̶r̶e̶a̸l̴l̶y̷ ̶r̸a̵t̵h̷e̵r̶ ̴n̶o̵t̷ ̸s̷u̷l̴l̷y̶ ̷m̶y̵ ̵h̷a̵n̸d̷s̴ ̵w̵i̵t̶h̴ ̷w̵o̴r̶t̵h̸l̴e̷s̶s̸ ̶b̷e̸a̷s̸t̸s̴,̷ ̵l̴i̶k̶e̷ ̸y̸o̸u̵r̵ ̴b̸r̸o̵t̷h̶e̴r̴,̶ ̷b̸u̶t̶ ̴y̵o̵u̷'̸v̶e̶ ̷m̴a̵d̶e̴ ̴i̷t̴ ̶a̵b̷s̸o̶l̷u̴t̴e̸l̴y̷ ̶n̴e̶c̶e̷s̷s̶a̴r̸y̴.̸”

Rage shot through Angel Dust and for a moment he saw red, but a took a deep breath and just glared

“Don’t call him worthless,” He snarled.

Ahkazriel’s eyes widened a fraction before it smirked

“Y̸o̶u̵'̸r̷e̴ ̸c̷u̵t̶e̶,̴” It mocked before approaching him “A̶r̷e̴ ̷y̶o̴u̵ ̶g̶o̴i̷n̴g̶ ̵t̶o̵ ̵b̴e̶h̸a̵v̷e̸?̴”

Angel nodded, closing his eyes as Ahkazriel wrapped its arms around him.

He stumbled out of Ahkazriel’s grip and fell to the floor in some demons' lair. He looked around the room in confusion

“D-Did you kill whoever used to live here?” He asked nervously.

Ahkazriel didn’t respond. Simply swiped Angel’s phone and returned to the screens at the far end of the room. Angel Dust scoffed before pushing himself to his feet.

“Fine. Whatever,” He grumbled before starting to look around.

He went rigid at the sight of two tiny spider paws poking out from behind a crate. Angel bolted over to it, sliding on his knees to stop in front of Arackniss. He was awake, but not really. He was just staring straight ahead into nothing, eyes completely blank. Angel gripped his shoulders and shook him gently

“Niss! Stai bene?” He worried.

Arackniss didn’t respond. His head just fell forward from being rocked, like he was a lifeless doll. Angel shook him again, harder this time

“Svegliati, Niss!” He snapped.

Nothing.

Angel reluctantly released him, just staring at his motionless body. He was breathing, and blinking, so he was alive… So why wasn’t he responding? He glared over his shoulder at Ahkazriel

“What the hell did you do to him, you fucking monster!?” He screamed, pushing himself to his feet.

Ahkazriel glanced back at Angel Dust

“Y̴o̶u̸ ̴s̴a̸w̴ ̴w̴h̶a̸t̸ ̵I̸ ̸d̸i̴d̶ ̶t̸o̶ ̷h̶i̴m̵,̵” It drawled “U̶n̸l̶e̷s̸s̸ ̸y̶o̸u̸ ̷c̷o̸u̴l̶d̸n̷'̸t̶ ̶s̷t̴o̷m̶a̸c̴h̵ ̷t̴h̸e̷ ̸v̵i̶d̴e̸o̶ ̴I̷ ̶s̵e̸n̶t̸ ̷y̵o̴u̵.̶”

Angel bared his teeth, shifting to lunge at Ahkazriel, but halted when a wispy hand wrapped around his ankle. He almost looked down, but quickly stopped himself. Alastor’s shadow… He couldn’t risk drawing attention to it. He took a deep, shaky breath to calm himself, and turned his attention back to Arackniss.

He sat down next to him and pulled him into a hug

“I’m here, bro…” He soothed, nuzzling the top of Arackniss’ head.

Arackniss didn’t respond in the slightest. Angel Dust bit his lip and squeezed his eyes shut so he wouldn’t cry. He blamed himself for this. If he just… Done this in the first place. He wrapped all his arms around Arackniss and buried his face in his hair, babbling incoherently as he started to sob.

He winced when a flash went off and he quickly lifted his head. He glared at Ahkazriel who’d, apparently, just taken a picture of Angel Dust crying on his brother

“What the hell!?” He snapped, reaching up to wipe his eyes “Can’t a guy get some privacy?”

Ahkazriel just smirked and walked away. Angel shuddered, why did this thing have to be so damn creepy? He sighed and turned his attention back to Arackniss, brushing some of his hair out of his face

“Non preoccuparti, Amedeo, ti proteggerò,” He soothed before kissing Arackniss on the forehead.

All their issues seemed so insignificant now. Obviously they weren't, Arackniss had been a homophic asshole to Angel, and that wouldn’t just go away, but right at this very moment, it didn’t matter. It could matter again once they’d gotten out of this mess.

“I̵ ̷h̵a̶v̶e̸ ̴a̷ ̷q̶u̴e̵s̴t̷i̴o̵n̵,̴” Ahkazriel started as it approached.

Angel glared daggers at it

“Yeah? Well I don’t have answers,” He scowled “Go fuck yourself.”

Ahkazriel looked taken aback for a moment before a sadistic grin split its face

“W̸h̸y̸ ̷w̷o̷u̴l̷d̷ ̴I̷?̷ ̸T̴h̷a̸t̸'̵s̴ ̵w̷h̵a̷t̷ ̴Nissy ̸i̷s̷ ̵f̸o̶r̶,̶” It purred.

Angel snarled at it

“Stay the fuck away from him!” He yelled.

Ahkazriel tossed its head back and laughed

“B̶e̵ ̷c̴a̴l̶m̵,̵ ̵e̴f̷f̷e̷m̸i̶n̴a̷t̴e̶ ̶o̴n̶e̴,̴ ̶i̵t̸ ̴w̴a̶s̶ ̷a̷ ̵j̶o̷k̵e̷,̵” It soothed “I̵'̴m̷ ̶s̷a̴v̸i̶n̵g̷ ̷m̷y̶ ̴b̵r̸e̵e̴d̴i̸n̷g̷ ̴p̵a̸r̵t̸s̷ ̷f̵o̵r̴ ̸t̷h̴e̵ ̷T̶e̵m̶p̷t̵e̴r̶.̸”

Angel frowned

“Tempter? Ya know that don’t exactly narrow it down. That could be any number of demons in Hell,” He grumbled.

Ahkazriel hooded its eyes

“H̵e̸'̶s̵ ̷w̷h̷y̷ ̴I̷ ̸n̸e̴e̷d̸ ̸y̷o̷u̴,̴ Angel Dust,̸” It explained.

Angel lowered his gaze. A ‘Tempter’, a guy apparently, who Angel was close with… 

“Yeah… I’m a sex worker, babe, that could still be anyone,” He huffed.

Ahkazriel cocked an eyebrow

“I̴ ̴b̵e̷l̵i̶e̸v̴e̷ ̸h̵e̸ ̸o̸w̷n̷s̷ ̶y̵o̴u̶,̶” It hummed flippantly before returning to the screens, clearly having grown bored with the conversation.

Angel’s eyes widened and he gently leaned Arackniss against the crate before hopping to his feet

“Valentino?” He gaped “You kidnapped me to get at Valentino?”

Ahkazriel glanced over as Angel Dust approached and stood next to it

“I̶ ̸d̴o̶n̴'̶t̵ ̵k̵n̸o̵w̴ ̶h̴o̷w̷ ̵I̸ ̵c̴o̸u̷l̸d̸ ̷b̵e̸ ̷a̶n̶y̴ ̸m̵o̷r̷e̵ ̸c̴l̶e̷a̷r̷,̶” It said tonelessly.

Angel crossed his arms and cocked a hip

“Ya coulda said ‘Valentino’. That woulda been oodles more clear,” He drawled “Anyway. You’re nuts. Val’s not gonna care that I’m gone. And he certainly ain’t about to risk his life for me.”

Ahkazriel chuckled under its breath

“H̸e̸'̴l̸l̴ ̴c̶o̸m̶e̸.̸”

Angel Dust lowered a hand to his hip

“Look, I know him better than you, and believe me when I say, he ain’t comin’. Yeah, I’m his star, but he doesn’t actually like me that much. If I disappear, he’ll just find new talent,” He explained, taking a step towards Ahkazriel, hooding his eyes, and running a hand up its arm “Down here, we ain’t selfless like…  _ You  _ lot up in Heaven.”

It physically pained him to imply Ahkazriel was even in the same ballpark as ‘selfless’. All of its eyes immediately locked on Angel Dust’s touch and it  _ snarled _ . Angel quickly retracted his hand and chuckled sheepishly

“S-Sorry… I flirt when I’m nervous,” He mumbled.

Ahkazriel looked Angel Dust over before scoffing at him and turning its attention back to the screens. Angel sighed in defeat and returned to Arackniss, quickly pulling his tiny big brother into his arms.

He’d never seen Arackniss so broken, and it was killing him. Arackniss didn’t break, he was tough. He could take anything anyone threw at him. Angel corded his fingers through Arackniss’ hair

“I guess everyone’s got that one thing, huh?” He whimpered.

“Y̴e̵s̵.̵ ̵I̸'̴v̶e̶ ̴b̴e̸g̶u̶n̴ ̴t̸o̴ ̸n̶o̵t̶i̵c̵e̸ ̴a̶ ̶p̶a̷t̷t̸e̷r̵n̷ ̷w̴i̴t̸h̴ ̷y̶o̶u̶ ̷s̵i̴n̸n̶e̶r̷s̸,̷” Ahkazriel stated from its side of the room.

Angel huffed and leaned forward a bit to glare

“What are you talking about?” He grumbled.

“T̵h̷e̵ ̴o̴n̴e̴ ̶t̸h̵i̶n̸g̴.̴ ̶I̴'̷v̴e̷ ̷n̵o̶t̵i̵c̵e̸d̴ ̶a̵ ̵p̵a̸t̸t̴e̶r̴n̶,̸” Ahkazriel explained vaguely.

Angel rolled his eyes. Okay, he’d bite.

“Oh yeah? And what’s this  _ pattern  _ you’ve noticed?” He tried to keep the sarcasm out of his voice, he really did.

Luckily, sarcasm seemed to be lost on this monster. Ahkazriel just looked over its shoulder at Angel

“P̴o̴o̶r̷ ̶p̴a̴t̵e̴r̸n̸a̵l̵ ̴f̴i̶g̶u̶r̵e̸s̴,̶” It stated bluntly “B̵o̵t̶h̸ ̵y̵o̶u̴r̵ ̶b̷r̶o̵t̶h̵e̵r̶ ̷a̸n̶d̷ ̸t̶h̵e̵ Radio Demon w̵e̴r̴e̵ ̸s̷e̶x̴u̸a̵l̶l̴y̴ ̸a̴s̶s̵a̶u̴l̷t̴e̸d̷ ̶b̶y̵ ̷t̷h̵e̵i̵r̸ ̶f̵a̵t̵h̸e̷r̵s̵.̴”

What!? Angel’s eyes widened and he paled. He quickly hid himself behind the crate again and bit his lip. He looked down at Arackniss. He’d honestly had no idea… He’d always just thought Arackniss was a raging homophobe, like Henroin.

Knowing his dad like he did, Angel was sure the assault was just some fucked up idea Henroin had come up with to ‘keep Arackniss straight’, or some other such nonsense. He tightened his grip around Arackniss just slightly and narrowed his eyes dangerously.

Did it still happen? Especially now that they were in Hell, and Arackniss was surrounded by sex and sin 24/7? Did Henroin rape Arackniss regularly now to make sure he didn’t ‘stray’? Angel didn’t even understand the logic. How raping his own son qualified as a heterosexual act in Henroin’s mind was beyond Angel.

“Why are you still so loyal to that bastard?” Angel whispered harshly.

Arackniss didn’t reply. Didn’t even make an indication he’d heard anything. Angel sighed and gently kissed Arackniss swollen cheek

“Fine. You rest for now… But we are gonna talk about this when you wake up. You hear me!?” He snapped.

Arackniss blinked slowly, but Angel had a feeling it wasn’t a response of any kind. If that ever-present emptiness behind Arackniss’ eyes was anything to go by.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the picture Ahkazriel took with Angel's phone: 
> 
> [](https://ibb.co/BBckjg7)  
> 
> 
> It would've been a full pic, but I just don't have the time to finish it, so I hope the sketch is okay :)


	22. Ransom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vox's frustration gets the better of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Valentino's not doing his best.

“Vox!”

Valentino’s shrill scream nearly shot Vox through the roof. He grumbled under his breath as he made his way into the bedroom

“What’s goin’ on, Cuddlebug?” He drawled.

Valentino was staring at his phone

“That fucking Angel is asking for it!” He screamed.

Vox winced before approaching Valentino and sitting next to him on the bed

“What is it?” He sighed.

Valentino showed Vox a picture of Angel Dust with a smaller, beat-up spider demon in his arms.

“Alright, I know Angie, but who’s the pipsqueak?” He wondered.

Valentino shot him a glare

“Is that  _ really  _ what’s relevant right now?” He scoffed “Ahkazriel texted me this from Angie’s phone.”

Vox’s eyes widened

“Oh… Shit…”

Valentino tossed his phone aside

“How the fuck am I supposed to replace him!?” He snapped “I’m not powerful enough to form deals right now!”

Vox winced

“... Not anything worth while anyway,” He muttered.

Valentino buried his face in Vox’s shoulder and groaned in frustration

“What am I gonna do without my star?” He whined.

Vox wrapped an arm around him

“There, there,” He soothed awkwardly “I’ll get you new talent.”

Valentino stood in a huff

“Oh yeah, ‘cause  _ that’s  _ not gonna be like wearing a huge banner that says ‘I’m weak and helpless’! You, making deals for me,” He growled.

Vox sighed in annoyance

“I’m only trying to help, you ungrateful piece of shit,” He snarled.

Valentino winced and his bravado quickly deflated

“I… I know… I’m sorry,” He mumbled.

Vox winced and averted his gaze

“No… I am. I didn’t mean that.” He’d forgotten what a doormat Valentino had become since losing his wings.

Valentino sat back down

“Maybe I should just give myself to it… Get the inevitable over with,” He sighed defeatedly.

Vox frowned in horror

“What are you talking about!?” He snapped “C’mon, Val! Grow some balls!”

Valentino flinched, antennae pinning back

“I’m just sick of cowering from this thing,” He admitted “It’s already weakened me, so there’s only a matter of time before it gets me… I just don’t want to wait for it.”

Vox shook his head

“Stop it. Quit trying to give up, I won’t let you,” He scolded “We’ll get your power back and we’ll kill it.”

Valentino pursed his lips together

“Okay… Send some people out tomorrow to find me some new talent,” He mumbled

Vox pulled Valentino closer, tugging on his coat

"Will do, now-" He pushed Valentino's coat open to expose his endless legs '-I don't know about you, but  _ I  _ am  _ super  _ horny."

Valentino didn't push Vox away, but he also wasn't exactly his typical eager self. Vox shrugged and pushed Valentino's coat off his shoulders

"Should I just take your non-reaction as a 'go ahead'?" He asked.

Valentino bit his lip and shrugged

"I dunno… I'm just… What if you shock me again? It  _ really _ hurt last time…" He mumbled.

Vox cocked an eyebrow. He'd never seen Valentino nervous about sex before. It was weird.

"Ain't gonna hurt ya, Precious," He assured.

Valentino swallowed thickly before nodding

"Okay… But you better stop if I tell you to," He agreed reluctantly. 

Vox rolled his eyes

"Obviously, babe. C'mon, it ain't like you're a virgin," He teased.

Valentino averted his gaze as he let Vox strip him

"I know… I just… I don't know how my body's gonna handle you now," He explained.

Vox shrugged

"Al handled us fine. Handled you at, arguably, your worst. So I'm sure you'll be fine," He drawled flippantly.

Maybe he felt like Valentino was being over dramatic because Alastor had suffered far worse and had been, by comparison, far less of a, in Vox's opinion, big baby about it. Sure, Alastor had been weakened, but he never really lost that fire, and he was  _ always _ scheming in some way. Even after the pillory, Alastor still had enough spunk to threaten Valentino's existence. 

"Please don't talk about  _ him _ ," Valentino snarled.

Vox chuckled softly as he stripped before urging Valentino to lie down

"Alright, my Tall Drink of Water," He teased "Spread those gorgeous legs and let me see what I get to play with."

Valentino's face was scrunched up in discomfort. It took everything in Vox's power not to roll his eyes

"What is it now?" He grumbled.

Valentino averted his gaze, antennae pinning back

"...Lying on my back hurts my stumps…" He mumbled dejectedly. 

Vox winced and shifted back so Valentino could turn over

"Oh right… Sorry…"

Well,  _ that  _ had been a rather spectacular blunder on his part… In all honesty, he didn't know why Valentino's behavior bothered him so much. Up until this point, Vox had always been under the impression that he'd love a more subdued Valentino. So why did  _ this  _ suck so bad? Oh. Right. 'Cause it was  _ his _ fault.

Valentino was a pitiful doormat because Vox had decided to go check on Alastor, and had left him alone. Although…

"Ya know," He started, lubing up his fingers before pressing two inside Valentino, who stiffened at the sudden contact "Ya never did explain how it got inside in the first place."

Valentino shoved his top pair of arms under his pillows and rested his head on top

"It came in through the balcony," He explained, tone relaxed, sounding a lot more like he was getting a massage than getting fingered.

Vox crooked his finger and dug it into Valentino's prostate, causing him to yelp and shudder

"No, I got that part. But how did it get  _ inside _ ? The studio is warded," He drawled.

Valentino tensed and he buried his face in the pillows

"I don't want to talk about the Angel right now," He huffed.

Vox cocked an eyebrow before extracting his cables from the slots on his back and tying Valentino down with them. He, of course,  _ immediately  _ began to struggle.

"No. You're going to tell me exactly how it got inside," He ordered, giving Valentino's ass a firm swat.

Valentino fought against Vox's cables

"Let go!" He snapped "I don't want to talk about it!"

Vox tugged his fingers free and flipped Valentino over onto his back again, stump pain be damned. He grabbed Valentino's face and forced eye contact

"How did the Angel get inside the studio!?" He yelled.

Tears welled up in Valentino's eyes

"I forgot the fucking door open!"

It fell silent and Vox released Valentino, letting him scurry away. He sat on the other edge of the bed and buried his face in his hands

"I stepped out for some air and when I came inside to get my cigarettes, I left the door open… It wasn't out there when I was and I figured I wouldn't be inside long…" He whimpered.

Vox took a deep, frustrated breath

"So…  _ All  _ of this bullshit happened because… You're an idiot?" He scoffed in disbelief. 

Valentino just curled in on himself a bit. Vox wished he had a nose bridge to pinch.

"You've been moping around, bein' a dramatic pain in the ass, for days, because you're stupid?"

He just couldn't wrap his mind around it.  _ How  _ could Valentino have done something  _ so  _ dumb?

"I get it, okay!" Valentino suddenly snapped "I'm a stupid slut who got what he deserved!"

With that, he stood and fled to the en suite, slamming and locking the door once inside. Vox sighed heavily and flopped down on the bed

"Yeah! You are!" He called "So ya can't guilt me into feelin' bad anymore! You brought this on yourself!"

He regretted the words as soon as they were out of his mouth. But oh well. Not much he could do about it now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Vox is just really bad at not being a dick.


	23. Karma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alastor works to set his plan to help Angel Dust in motion while Husk tags along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think some of you are going to find this chapter very satisfying.

Husk flopped down on Alastor’s couch after being teleported there

“So… Guess I’m not allowed to go home until Ahkazriel’s dead, huh?” He wondered flippantly.

Alastor sat down next to him

“I would prefer you didn’t,” He huffed before loosely linking arms around Husk and closing his eyes.

Husk sighed softly before pulling Alastor down so his head was resting in his lap while he watched through his shadows eyes.

“How’s it going?” He asked.

Alastor crinkled his nose a bit

“Angel Dust is still clinging to his brother,” He described “They haven’t moved much. Angel’s brother still looks a little dead inside.”

Husk’s eyes widened

“They haven’t moved at all?” He gaped.

Alastor opened his eyes and shook his head

“Not really. Angel has shifted a bit, but it doesn’t seem like he strays very far from his brother,” He explained.

Husk nodded in understanding

“And Ahkazriel?”

Alastor pursed his lips together

“I didn’t see it,” He huffed in frustration "Angel is likely avoiding it."

Husk leaned down and kissed Alastor on the forehead

"I'm so sorry for what this is putting you through, Sweetheart," He sighed.

Alastor blushed deeply and sat up before planting a deep kiss on Husk's lips. Husk stumbled back a bit, quickly wrapping an arm around Alastor's waist so he wouldn't fall and eagerly kissing back. Alastor crawled into Husk's lap, wrapping his arms around his neck. Husk's wings shot out and he buried a paw in Alastor's hair, pulling him impossibly closer.

Alastor reluctantly broke the kiss and hummed contently. Husk just stared at him, dazed.

"W-Why?" He sputtered.

Alastor kissed Husk's nose

"Are you complaining?" He teased.

Husk quickly shook his head

"Never! I just… Wow… Thanks," He chuckled bashfully. 

Alastor covered his mouth to stifle a giggle

"You're adorable, dear," He cooed, relaxing in Husk's lap "The truth is, you made me feel warm, which I haven't felt since I learned Ahkazriel was back."

Husk wrapped his arms around Alastor's waist

"Well, I'll be happy to make you feel warm anytime," He purred. 

Alastor pressed their foreheads together and hooded his eyes

"You know what I think we should do?" He breathed.

Husk swallowed thickly

"I get the feeling we're not exactly on the same page, so tell me what you're thinking first," He chuckled sheepishly. 

Alastor cocked an eyebrow playfully

"I think we should check in with Valentino," He said.

Husk cleared his throat

"Yeah, we weren't on the same page at all, but sure. Whatever you want," He muttered.

Alastor's smile grew and he hooded his eyes

"Naughty kitty," He teased before sliding off Husk's lap "Come on. If you behave, I'll reward you when we get back."

Husk was on his feet in seconds

"Okay. Let's go," He urged.

Alastor wrapped his arms around Husk and teleported them to Valentino's studio.

  
He couldn't teleport them into the building, due to the wards, but just outside the entrance was fair game. Alastor glared up at the building. Husk took his hand

"You okay?" He worried "We don't have to do this if it makes you uncomfortable."

Alastor shook his head

"No. Valentino owns Angel Dust's contract, so he should be helping," He grumbled before marching inside.

He didn't bother stopping at the reception desk, just made a b-line for the elevator. The secretary leaned over her desk

"Excuse me!" She called "Mister Valentino isn't seeing anyone right now!"

Alastor paid her no mind as he got onto the elevator, Husk right behind him. He pushed the button just below the Penthouse, which was only accessible with a key. So they'd have to take the stairs. Husk leaned against the back wall and yawned

"She didn't seem too thrilled," He commented.

Alastor shrugged indifferently as the elevator doors closed

"Hmm… I wonder why Valentino is isolating himself," He hummed.

Husk nodded

"That is weird. Maybe he and Vox are getting nasty?" He suggested.

Alastor cringed a bit

"I don't want to think about that," He gagged.

Husk snickered and reached out, grabbing the back of Alastor's coat and pulling him into a hug. Alastor eagerly returned it, cooing excitedly. The elevator dinged as it arrived at its destination. Alastor hummed as he got off the elevator, Husk right behind him, and made his way to the stairwell.

Surprisingly, the door to the Penthouse wasn't locked. Alastor found that a bit strange, but he didn't call much attention to it as he opened the door.

"Valentino!" He called.

It was quiet, and dark. Alastor eyes lit up in the dim dwelling. Husk's fur stood on edge and he puffed his wings up a bit. Alastor ventured further into the Penthouse

"Valentino, are you here!"

No response. Husk looked around before his eyes locked on the light switch. He turned the lights on and relaxed somewhat. Alastor looked over at him and shrugged in confusion

"I suppose he isn't here?" He hummed before sitting down on one of the couches, patting the spot next to him.

Husk flopped down and wrapped an arm around Alastor's shoulders

"Guess not. Weird," He yawned.

The sound of movement in the bedroom caught Alastor's attention, ear twitching towards it. He turned towards the door and narrowed his eyes before standing

"Stay, Minou," He ordered as he made his way to the door.

Husk cocked an eyebrow and followed after Alastor. Like hell he was just gonna stay put. Alastor opened the door and entered the bedroom

"Valentino?" He called.

Vox winced from where he was standing at the en suite door and he spun around, electricity sparking at his fingertips. He relaxed somewhat when he saw who it was

"Oh… Al," He muttered.

Alastor tilted his head and twirled his mic around in one hand

"I need to speak with Valentino. Where is he?" He drawled.

Vox jerked his thumb back at the ensuite door

"In there. We had a fight and now he won't come out," He huffed before turning towards the door and slamming a fist into it, cracking the wood "He's being a fucking drama queen!"

Husk lumbered into the room and sat down on the bed. He had a feeling this was going to take a while, and he didn't want to stand for it all. Alastor approached Vox and put a hand on his shoulder

"Gently," He soothed, urging him away from the door "Valentino? It's Alastor, could you come out here, please? I need to speak with you."

Vox scoffed and stomped back to the bed, sitting down in a huff

"Fine. You deal with him," He grumbled.

Husk perked up when the ensuite door opened a crack and Valentino peaked out. From what he could see, Valentino wasn't doing too hot. He was pale and had bags under his eyes. He looked ill… Or weakened.

"What do you want, Bambi?" He spat.

Alastor took a single step back

"I need to discuss things about Angel Dust with you," He explained "He's your contract, and therefore your responsibility."

Valentino narrowed his eyes

"You want me to just give myself up to that thing for him!? No way!" He snapped.

Husk frowned slightly and Alastor blinked in confusion

"Give yourself up to it? What do you mean?" He asked.

The door opened more and Valentino left the ensuite. He wasn't wearing anything, but two thirds of the people in the room had already seen him naked before, and the last third didn't care, so whatever. It's not like his junk was what caught Husk's eye as Valentino walked passed anyway. His jaw dropped slightly at the mangled stumps he probably used to call wings.

"It got you…" Alastor breathed.

Valentino stiffened before shooting him a glare

"You must be ecstatic. I got what I deserved, right?" He huffed before grabbing his phone off the dresser in the corner.

Alastor tilted his head and hooded his eyes

"Well… I will say, seeing karma do its work is immensely satisfying, but that's not why I'm here," He chirped.

Valentino scoffed and averted his gaze

"I am not dying for a slave," He snarled.

Alastor approached him

"Honestly, dear, I'm not really giving you a choice," He hissed, jabbing his mic into Valentino's throat, grin widening when he stumbled back to escape Alastor's advance.

Valentino's antennae pinned back nervously. Alastor was just soaking in the satisfying fear in Valentino's body language

"Oh how the tables have turned," He purred.

Valentino swallowed thickly and visibly paled. Vox stood up then

"Back off, Alastor," He warned "I'm not just going to let you kill him."

Alastor looked over his shoulder at Vox

"Who said anything about killing him? Why would I kill him-" He turned his head back to Valentino "-When he wasn't so kind?"

Valentino shrunk away a bit, gripping the edge of his dresser. Alastor licked his lips as he looked Valentino over, the hunger in his eyes far more literal than Valentino's had ever been

"You have two options here. Ahkazriel has taken Angel Dust and his brother, you can help me get them back and I'll let bygones be bygones, or you can refuse to help and I'll get the revenge I've been letting stew for five years."

Valentino averted his gaze

"I'm stunted, Bambi, how exactly am I supposed to help?" He muttered.

Alastor glanced down at Valentino's phone

"I'm assuming it wants you… Then you are, indeed, going to give yourself to it," He stated.

Vox shook his head

"No! I'm not letting you hand him over to that thing! C'mon, Al, you know what it'll do to him!" He snapped.

Husk's eyes darted between the three of them. This was all just giving him a headache. Alastor looked Valentino over again

"I know exactly what it will do to him… And I'm fine with it."

Husk winced and lowered his gaze. He hadn't realized just how much animosity Alastor held towards Valentino. Just about a day or two ago, Alastor had told Angel Dust that no one deserved what Ahkazriel had put Arackniss through… No one but Valentino apparently.

"So what exactly is your plan, if I refuse?" Valentino asked.

Alastor tilted his head dangerously

"The Pillory left quite a mark, and I'm willing to bet you've made more enemies than I have," He hummed.

Valentino shrunk away again and swallowed thickly, averting his gaze. Vox took a step forward

"Al, you can't! No one knows he's stunted but us!" He informed.

Alastor's eyes lit up a bit

"Oh? Intending to keep it quiet, are we?" He laughed "That had been my intention, but you two had other plans."

Vox flinched and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. Alastor narrowed his eyes

"I wouldn't even need the actual Pillory. With your reputation, all I'd have to do is broadcast that you're a weak, little caterpillar, and all of Hell can act as your Pillory," He purred.

Valentino raised his hands in defense

"Okay!" He snapped "I'll… Do it…"

Husk's eyes widened. He hadn't actually been expecting Valentino to agree. And judging by the look of horror on Vox's face, neither had he.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alastor knows exactly how to make someone's life Hell, and he's far from afraid to in order to get what he wants.


	24. Quick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Valentino agrees to hand himself over to Ahkazriel, but Ahkazriel wants more than Valentino is willing to give.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next few chapters with will probably be pretty heavy.

Valentino glared at Alastor from where he was curled up in the corner of the room. Where did that little bastard get off ordering Valentino around like that? If he’d been at full power, he’d put Alastor in the ground for this. Damn that Ahkazriel. He glanced up at Vox

“You were extremely helpful, by the way,” He drawled sarcastically.

Vox just shot him a glare

“You didn’t have to agree!” He snapped “Quite dumping all the blame on me!”

Valentino flinched and averted his gaze

“I’d rather get erased by an Angel then spend the next who knows how long as a free pump for whoever wants me in Hell,” He grumbled.

Vox slumped a bit and sighed in frustration. Valentino lowered his healthy antenna and nervously chewed on the fluff. Vox quickly swatted at him, making him stop

“Quit that. You want them both all fucked up?” He scolded.

Valentino whimpered softly and batted his eyelashes at Vox. Chewing on his fluff helped him calm down, and the  _ last  _ thing he wanted was to have a breakdown in front of Alastor and his cat. Vox didn’t budge. Valentino sighed in defeat and slumped before glancing up at Husk. He never had gotten around to getting back at the old drunk for what he’d done. Then again, he supposed he should’ve seen it coming, nothing was more important to Husk than Alastor… Damn… His lack of foresight really was gonna be the death of him, huh?

Husk was helping Alastor go through Valentino’s phone now. Alastor lifted his head, looking a little exhausted behind the eyes from having to pay attention to the phone, and looked at Valentino

“Tell it you’ll do as it says,” He ordered as Husk handed the phone back to Valentino, who reluctantly took it.

He looked down at his phone and bit his lip. He knew there was no other option, this Angel knew what it wanted, and it wouldn’t be budging. Valentino swallowed thickly and called Angel Dust’s phone. His hands shook as he listened to the phone ring. It clicked as it was answered, but no one said anything. Valentino glanced around a bit in confusion

“Uh… Hello?” He muttered.

Silence. Valentino frowned

“Ahkazriel?” He asked.

“ _ Are you on the phone!? _ ” Angel Dust’s voice shouted somewhere in the background “ _ Who are you talking to!? _ ”

Valentino took a breath. Well… It was there anyway, just not talking.

“ _ I̸'̴m̴ ̴h̴a̶p̷p̵y̸ ̸t̶o̷ ̵h̷e̵a̵r̴ ̸f̵r̵o̵m̴ ̴y̶o̶u̴,̴ ̶P̴e̵t̴,̶ _ ” Ahkazriel finally purred.

A shudder ran up Valentino’s spine and he instinctively hung up. He tossed his phone aside and buried his face in his hands. He couldn’t do this. He was terrified, and Angel Dust was  _ so  _ not worth his life. Vox scooted closer to him and wrapped his arms around him, pulling him close. Alastor looked down at Valentino’s phone on the bed

“Come now, dear, don’t chicken out,” He teased.

Valentino shot him a glare

“You talk to it, then!” He snapped “Let’s see  _ you  _ get through a conversation!”

Alastor visibly tensed and he narrowed his eyes. Husk sat up a little straighter and grabbed the phone, selecting Angel Dust’s number and holding the phone to his ear, rolling his eyes a bit. Alastor’s expression dropped to one of horror, smile greatly strained.. Husk put the phone on speaker when it was answered.

“ _ W̶h̷a̵t̵ ̸y̶o̸u̵ ̵j̶u̷s̴t̵ ̷d̷i̸d̷ ̴w̷a̵s̸ ̷v̷e̷r̴y̶ ̵i̶m̷p̸o̷l̵i̵t̸e̸,̸ _ ” Ahkazriel stated flatly.

Alastor’s breath hitched at the sound of its voice and his ears pinned back. Valentino shot Husk a fiery glare, to which Husk just motioned to the phone. Valentino took a breath and shifted closer to Husk

“Sorry about that… It cut out,” He grumbled, still glaring at Husk.

It was quiet for a moment

“ _ D̴o̷ ̶n̵o̴t̵ ̶l̵i̴e̵ ̵t̵o̵ ̶m̴e̸.̷ _ ”

Valentino tensed and his antennae pinned back

“Habit…” He muttered “Truth is… You terrify me…”

He physically pained him to admit to that, but this thing could actually tell when he was lying, so the only option he had was the truth.

“ _ A̴s̶ ̴I̴ ̴s̴h̶o̸u̶l̶d̷,̵ ̶m̵y̶ ̸s̸w̶e̸e̸t̵ ̵b̶u̴t̸t̷e̶r̶f̷l̴y̶,̶ _ ” Ahkazriel purred “ _ N̴o̸w̸,̴ ̵I̸ ̴i̸m̵a̸g̴i̸n̶e̴ ̶t̷h̸i̷s̶ ̵p̷h̷o̴n̶e̷ ̴c̷a̴l̵l̷ ̵h̶a̸s̶ ̶a̶ ̸p̶u̵r̴p̸o̵s̷e̴.̴ ̶W̴h̷a̴t̸ ̴c̸a̶n̶ ̸I̵ ̵d̵o̵ ̴f̷o̷r̴ ̷y̶o̵u̶?̵ _ ”

Valentino gritted his teeth and looked up at Alastor, who just nodded curtly. He looked back down at the phone

“Let Angel and his brother go… It’s me you want, right?” He grumbled.

“ _ A̷ ̶s̸i̴n̸g̵l̸e̵ ̸d̶e̴m̵o̸n̵,̸ ̵n̸o̷ ̷m̷a̷t̶t̴e̴r̷ ̷h̶o̵w̴ ̵p̴o̷w̵e̴r̷f̴u̷l̵,̷ ̴i̸s̷ ̸n̴o̸t̴ ̴w̵o̴r̷t̶h̶ ̷t̷w̶o̷.̴ ̵I̴f̷ ̶y̴o̶u̴ ̵w̸a̵n̴t̷ ̸t̴h̴e̵m̶ ̶b̴o̷t̶h̸ ̶r̷e̵l̸e̷a̶s̶e̴d̴,̴ ̸y̴o̵u̷ ̷w̷i̸l̴l̸ ̴h̶a̷v̴e̵ ̴t̶o̴ ̶c̴o̷m̷p̵e̵n̶s̶a̸t̷e̵ ̵m̵e̵ ̴e̸q̴u̶a̸l̶l̵y̸,̷ _ ” Ahkazriel said, tone completely devoid of emotion.

Valentino’s eyes widened and he looked up at Alastor, shrugging in confusion. He hadn’t been expecting that. Alastor narrowed his eyes at the phone. Valentino took a breath

“Okay… What do you want?” He huffed.

Ahkazriel hummed in thought

“ _ Y̷o̵u̸,̸ ̶o̸b̴v̵i̶o̵u̵s̵l̴y̶.̶.̶.̸ ̶A̶n̴d̷ ̴t̸h̷e̸ ̶o̵t̶h̴e̵r̷ ̵o̴n̷e̴,̸ ̵t̴h̷e̴ ̸o̶n̵e̵ ̷y̷o̴u̸ ̴f̵r̷a̵t̴e̵r̵n̸i̵z̶e̴ ̴w̷i̴t̷h̸,̸ _ ” He hummed.

Valentino blinked in confusion. There were a  _ lot  _ of demons he ‘fraternized’ with… Someone other demons correlate him with…-

“Vox!?” He gaped, eyes wide in fear.

Vox shrunk a bit and whimpered softly.

“ _ Y̵e̷s̷.̸ _ ”

Valentino let out a shaky breath

“But-”

“ _ -̵Y̴o̷u̴ ̴k̴n̶o̸w̸ ̷m̶y̴ ̶t̵e̸r̵m̶s̴.̶ ̵Y̵o̶u̵ ̵h̷a̶v̴e̸ ̴t̴w̷e̵n̵t̷y̴-̵f̵o̶u̷r̶ ̸h̵o̴u̶r̶s̸ ̷t̶o̵ ̸m̶a̵k̴e̶ ̴a̸n̶ ̸a̵p̵p̶e̶a̸r̵a̵n̷c̸e̴.̴ _ ”

And with that, the call disconnected. Immediately after, a text of just coordinates came in. Valentino slumped in defeat and looked up at Alastor

“Are you fucking happy!?” He snapped, tears welling up in his eyes.

Alastor tilted his head a bit

“Hmm? Oh, yes, I’m perfectly content with this outcome,” He cooed.

Vox scoffed and glared at Alastor

“What draining me dry and leaving me to rot wasn’t enough for you!?” He spat.

Alastor’s ears twitched

“I never intended to kill you… Regardless, I still don’t like you, and therefore don’t feel much remorse if you have to die in order to save someone I  _ do  _ like,” He drawled.

Husk covered his mouth to stifle a laugh. Vox stood

“Well I’m not doin’ it. Fuck no!” He snapped “ _ I’m  _ not weakened, you can’t make me!”

Valentino peeked up at Vox dejectedly but didn’t say anything. He’d be equal parts horrified and relieved by Ahkazriel’s demands. On one hand, he didn’t want Vox to get hurt, but on the other, he  _ really  _ didn’t want to have to go alone.  _ Weakened  _ and alone. He, obviously, hadn’t expected Vox to be thrilled with the situation, but he hadn’t expected him to outright refuse. Valentino was terrified of how Ahkazriel would react if he showed up alone. He stood and fled to the ensuite again as Alastor and Vox continued to argue.

He hunkered down next to the bathtub and sighed in defeat. He grabbed his angel pistol out from under the vanity, where he’d stashed it, and just turned it over in his hands… He was going to get erased either way, at least like this it would be quick and on his terms… He glanced over to the door. He could still hear Vox and Alastor bickering out there. They were distracted… Probably hadn’t even noticed he was gone. Good.

Valentino turned the pistol over and over in his hands, just staring at it. Tears welled up in his eyes and streamed down his cheeks. The worst part, to him, about the whole ordeal, was that he  _ knew  _ he deserved it. He let out a shaky breath before closing his eyes and holding the pistol to his temple. He  _ deserved  _ this. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 👀


	25. Falling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahkazriel starts to notice some changes in his body.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter takes place at the same time as this one.

Ahkazriel tapped his claws against the control panel in front of the screens. He couldn’t help but feel giddy. Valentino had contacted him. Had, more or less, agreed to his terms. Twenty-four hours. He hadn’t intended to demand Vox as well, but this would give him an opportunity to get him out of the way. He wanted Vox dead, but felt no urge to torment him. Ahkazriel flinched slightly when he heard Angel Dust muttering in Italian again. He looked over his shoulder at the effeminate spider demon, still uselessly clinging to his brother.

“Per favore, Deo, svegliati,” Angel sniffled, tears streaming down his cheeks as he gently rocked Arackniss “So che sei lì, parla con me.”

Ahkazriel bared his teeth a bit. The first day it was fine, Angel Dust’s endless pleading for Arackniss to talk to him, but now it was starting to grate on Ahkazriel’s nerves. Which, in of itself, was a strange feeling. Ahkazriel was sure he’d never been… Irritated before. Something falling in the corner of his eye caught his attention, and when he turned to see what it was, fear shot through him. One of his brilliant feathers, slowly drifting towards the floor. It turned to dust as soon as it landed.

Ahkazriel took a shaky breath and tucked his wings tight against his back before making his way towards Angel Dust.

“S̷t̸o̸p̶ ̶t̴a̷l̵k̸i̶n̸g̶!̴” He snapped.

Angel Dust flinched and cowered away from him a bit before shooting him a glare. He held Arackniss close and stuck his tongue out at Ahkazriel

“Go fuck yourself,” He grumbled.

Ahkazriel huffed in frustration before returning to the screens

“A̸t̶ ̴least ̶t̶r̷y̴ ̵t̶o̵ ̵b̷e̶ ̴quiet,̴” He grumbled before wincing and quickly reaching up to grip his throat.

What was going on? First it was these  _ feelings _ , then he started molting, and now he was losing his voice? Angel Dust poked his head out from behind his crate

“You gettin’ a sore throat or somethin’?” He drawled.

Ahkazriel shot him a murderous glare, and he hid behind the crate again, even tucking his legs in. He looked back up at the screens. He needed to hurry this along and get back to Heaven, before he couldn’t anymore. Hell was having an effect on him… He was falling.

Ahkazriel let out a piercing scream and slammed a fist into the wall, leaving a decent hole in its wake. Angel Dust yelped softly in fear from hiding place. Ahkazriel turned his rage in the direction, approaching and dragging Angel Dust out by his leg

“ **I̶̖͌͛͒ ̷͉̅a̷̻͎̍m̷̧͙͈͛͝ͅ ̶̡̗̞̪̫͒̈́͗̊̈́r̵̗̙̞̯̉̽͛̈́͜u̴̞̤̿̆͜n̷̝n̶̟̪̆̃̀͒͘i̴̤͈̓̑̾͘n̷̙̥̼͒̈́͗̿g̶̨͙̃̃͌̒̀ ̶̖͇̾̐̿̄o̷̠̞̞͛͆̔u̵̻̓͗̄̃͆ţ̸̥̹̗͗͌̍̕̕ ̶͔̗̯̮̳̕o̸͖͂͒̀̋f̶͓͌͐͐ ̶̻̩͒̉̔͝ṭ̷̋́͋̓í̷̘̖͍͍̓͂̓͌ṃ̸̭̹̒͝ͅe̷̡̝͖̕!̵̮̻̯͉͌̅͐̽̚** ” He roared.

Angel desperately tried to scramble away

“Please! I didn’t do anything!” He panicked, clawing at the ground and kicking back at his assailant.

Ahkazriel picked him up by the leg and whipped him at a wall. The force was hard enough to knock him out, after which Ahkazriel just stood there, panting as more feathers fell from his wings. He turned a deadly glare on Arackniss’ motionless body and picked him up by the throat. He sluggishly pawed at Ahkazriel’s hand, his body's ingrained response to violence, but otherwise didn’t react much. Ahkazriel pulled him close and kissed him deeply, slithering his tongue nearly into his throat.

Arackniss twitched slightly in response, but that was pretty much it. Ahkazriel pulled away and just watched the drool from the heated kiss drip down Arackniss’ chin. He shook the tiny demon violently

“ **R̷̡̛͐̍ẹ̷̹̉̓a̵̻̯͒̄̾̀c̶̡͍͕̤̬̑t̶̛̘̪̞͛,̵̪̹͐̂̓͋̇ ̶̡͕̩̅̋̓y̵̦̪̍̏͋̐o̴̬̣͚̳̒͗u̵̲͓͛͋̚ ̶̱͖͂̉́̕̚͜l̵̼͌͛͆͋į̴̠̱̝̺̾̂̓t̷͕͗̓͂̍͝t̴̡͈̊̾̿̐́l̸̞̘̞̈́ͅe̶̪̗̣͎͍͛̚̕͝ ̸̩͉̘̽̏͗b̸͇̱͔͆͜ĕ̴̢̞̙̑͝a̶̲̯͘s̶̘̥͋ͅt̵̡̩̹̰̟̊!̶̨̍̈̒** ” He shrieked, slamming Arackniss into the wall behind him.

He made a small noise like the air had been forced from his body. Ahkazriel scoffed and slammed him into the wall again.

“S-Stop,” Angel Dust’s groggy voice pulled his attention “You’ll kill him…”

Ahkazriel just threw him at Angel, who caught him with a grunt

“H̶e̶'̵s̵ ̷a̷l̶r̵e̵a̴d̴y̴ ̵d̴e̴a̷d̸,̸ ̶remember?̷” He growled.

Angel Dust sluggishly rearranged Arackniss so he was curled up, and held him close. He was awkwardly cradled in Angel’s lap. Ahkazriel smirked

“A̵n̷d̸ ̴w̵h̴o̸ knows,̷ ̵m̶a̷y̷b̷e̶ reanimating ̶w̴i̷l̶l̷ ̸s̷n̶a̵p̵ ̸h̴i̷m̸ ̷o̸u̷t̵ ̶o̶f̴ ̷h̷i̴s̵ ̷l̶i̶t̵t̴l̴e̷ daze,̷” He purred.

Angel just glared at him and tightened his grip around his brother

“Keep away from him,” He grumbled.

Ahkazriel just cocked an eyebrow before leaning down to eye-level with Angel Dust

“Are you going to make me?”

They both stiffened, Ahkazriel’s eyes widening. Angel Dust’s gaze darted to Ahkazriel’s throat in confusion before he looked back up. Ahkazriel straightened and walked away. He needed to get a hold of himself. He could handle the symptoms of Falling, but he couldn’t let the demons see his weakness.

“You’re falling, aren’t you?” Angel Dust suddenly asked.

Ahkazriel tensed and snarled over his shoulder at him. Angel held Arackniss closer, but otherwise didn’t back down

“That’s what you meant when you said you were running out of time,” He continued “You know you won’t be able to take Al on without your wings.”

Ahkazriel turned but didn’t approach

“And if I am?” He hissed “It doesn’t matter. Valentino has already agreed to hand himself and Vox over in exchange for you and your brother’s freedom.”

That wasn’t 100% true, and a few more feathers fell.

“Consuming  _ two  _ Overlords will promote me to Cherub level, and destroying the Radio Demon will be a snap,” He purred, his breeding bits tingling at the mention of Alastor, which caused more feathers to fall.

Angel Dust watched the feather float to the floor

“You know… I’ve always been a bit curious about what would happen if an angel sinned,” He commented “God’s been lenient with you, considering what you’ve been up to down here.”

Ahkazriel flinched back and his eyes widened in horror. He shook his head and quickly righted himself

“F̴a̸t̶h̸e̶r̸ is never lenient,” He hissed “I am falling because I’ve been in Hell too long, not because I have sinned.”

Angel Dust cocked an eyebrow before turning his attention back to Arackniss, gently petting his hair

“Sure. You keep telling yourself that,” He mumbled.

Ahkazriel snarled under his breath and turned his attention back to the screens. And keep telling himself that he would. He’d never admit to himself that he’d sinned. He hadn’t. Nothing he had done counted as a sin because the things he was tormenting weren’t human. It was an angel’s purpose to destroy demons in God’s name, so how could torturing what was in Hell for the sole purpose of being tortured be a sin? Deriving enjoyment from one’s purpose wasn’t a sin. Lying to complete that purpose more efficiently wasn’t a sin. God used to commit vengeful acts in the old days, so getting vengeance against the monster that maimed Ahkazriel’s beautiful face couldn’t be a sin either…

Ahkazriel dug his claws into the control panel before turning towards Angel Dust

“I̷ ̵t̵h̶i̷n̴k̶ ̸y̸o̸u̴ ̴h̵a̵v̸e̶ ̴g̶o̶t̸t̵e̶n̴ ̸a̸l̸l̵ ̶t̷h̵e̴ ̴u̸s̸e̴ ̵y̶o̴u̸ ̴c̷a̸n̸ ̷o̸u̸t̶ ̶o̴f̴ ̷t̴h̸a̸t̵ ̵t̷o̷n̴g̸u̴e̷ ̷o̴f̷ ̴y̷o̴u̸r̷s̸,̴” He snarled while approaching.

Angel Dust’s eyes widened in horror before darting around the room. When he found no means of escape, all he did was maneuver Arackniss behind him. Ahkazriel lifted Angel by the throat and pinned him to the wall

“ **B̴̰͂͒ë̵̡̱̋̿͘͠ġ̸̨͍̤̤̘͖̬͌̀̀̎̇͘.̴̨̘̩̜̟̰͓̲̊̿̒́̉** ”

Tears welled up in Angel’s eyes but he shook his head and spat in Ahkazriel’s face

“Fuck… You…” He wheezed, reaching up to claw at the hand around his throat.

Ahkazriel let out a frustrated sigh and wiped the spit off his cheek before shoving a finger into Angel’s mouth and piercing his tongue with his claw. Angel Dust screamed and started to violently struggle. He attempted to bite the offending appendage off, but Ahkazriel’s hide was too hard. Ahazkriel hooked his finger through the hole and pulled until Angel’s tongue tore out. Angel Dust let out a guttural, agonizing scream, before Ahkazriel just dropped him to the floor, tongue still dangling off his finger

“P̵e̵r̵h̸a̴p̷s̷,̵ ̷n̶o̴w̸ ̸y̷o̵u̴ ̸w̸i̵l̸l̶ ̵l̷e̷a̴r̴n̶ ̴w̸h̷e̷n̴ ̶t̷o̸ ̷h̴o̴l̴d̶ ̷y̸o̵u̸r̴ ̴t̵o̴n̴g̷u̸e̸,̵” He snickered, ignoring as more feathers fell from his, now ragged looking, wings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahkazriel's just living in firm denial right now.


	26. Easy Way Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Valentino tries to kill himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we back. Like I said, Arackniss probably won't have POV for a while, so this one's jumping back to Alastor.

Alastor didn’t understand why Husk had bolted passed him until he heard the shot. That had brought his and Vox’s bickering to halt real fast, and they both quickly followed after Husk. Alastor halted in the doorway and just stared at the scene before him. Husk was practically in Valentino’s lap with a paw tightly wrapped around his wrist, holding his arm straight up, a smoking pistol still tightly held in Valentino’s grip.

Valentino was trembling like crazy, tears streaming down his cheeks and dripping off his jaw. Husk panted softly before prying the gun out of Valentino’s hand

“No fucking way are you taking the easy way out!” He snapped.

Vox pushed passed Alastor into the bathroom. Husk pulled away and stood up, Vox knelt in front of Valentino and cupped his face

“What are you doing!?” He scolded.

Husk returned to Alastor and handed him the gun. Alastor took it with a shaky hand

“Did he really try to kill himself?” He asked softly.

Husk nodded

“Mhmm, probably not in our best interest to leave him alone right now,” He muttered.

Vox was still scolding Valentino, which seemed to be doing the opposite of helping.

“What? You’re gonna make this whole fucking mess then check out and make me clean it up!? What the fuck is wrong with you!?” He snapped.

Valentino just shrunk in on himself, pulling his knees to his chest and burying his head in them. Alastor would’ve almost felt bad if he didn’t hate Valentino so much. Husk, though, was a little more sympathetic

“Okay, Vox, ease off. I think he gets it,” He grumbled “We’ve got the gun now, it ain’t like he even can off himself anymore, so just leave him be.”

Vox looked up at Husk and snarled

“Butt out of my relationship,” He scoffed “This has nothing to do with you!”

Husk narrowed his eyes at Vox

“Oh yeah, I totally can’t see why he’d wanna off himself!” He drawled sarcastically “On top of everything else that’s going on, you’re treating him like crap!”

Vox pushed himself to his feet

“I said butt out!” He yelled, electricity gathering around his hands.

Alastor stepped into the bathroom and approached Valentino, who was still curled up in a trembling ball, tucked in the space between the bathtub and the vanity

“No easy way out for you, my dear,” He commented before kneeling in front of him “You have to face this, unfortunately.”

Valentino peeked up at Alastor a bit, sniffling as he wiped his eyes

“Go away…” He whispered brokenly.

Alastor stood

“I’m not entirely comfortable leaving you on your own,” He stated.

Valentino buried his face in his knees again and whimpered. Vox grabbed Alastor’s arm and yanked him away from Valentino, shoving him towards the door

“Get the fuck out!” He snapped “I’ll handle him.”

Alastor stumbled, Husk quickly catching him, and rubbed his arm. Husk made a move towards Vox but Alastor quickly stopped him

“Don’t,” He soothed before ushering Husk out of the bathroom and closing the door.

Husk sat down on the edge of the bed and rubbed his face

“I’m not comfortable leaving Val alone with him. Not with how Vox is treating him right now,” He informed.

Alastor sat down next to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and pulling him into a hug

“I know, but Vox isn’t wrong. Their relationship isn’t really our business,” He sighed.

They both flinched when Vox started yelling and Husk quickly covered his ears. Alastor smiled sympathetically at him. He knew that even though Husk wasn’t overly fond of either of them, that didn’t mean he wanted to see or hear either getting abused. He rubbed Husk’s back and leaned against his shoulder

“It’s alright, dear,” He soothed “It’s just yelling. I promise we’ll step in if it gets physical.”

Husk lowered his paws and sighed in exhaustion

“I don’t get why they’re even together…” He muttered “Why the hell would you want a relationship like that?”

Alastor lowered his gaze

“Perhaps it’s preferable to being alone?” He suggested.

Husk looked up at the door when the yelling stopped. His fur stood on edge a bit and his ears stood straight up. Alastor covered his mouth to stifle a giggle. Husk was so focused on listening to the ensuite that he didn’t even notice he was being laughed at. The bathroom door opened and Vox walked out, grumbling to himself under his breath. He swiped Valentino’s phone off the bed and opened the most recent text from Angel Dust’s phone.

Husk quietly stood and hurried back into the ensuite to check on Valentino. Alastor let him. Husk was such a worry wart, but Alastor loved that about him. He stood and approached Vox

“Is everything alright?” He asked disinterestedly.

Vox looked over his shoulder at Alastor and shrugged

“Just checking those coordinates,” He muttered “I need to know where I’m dropping Val off.”

Alastor tilted his head

“So you’re really going to make him do this alone?” He huffed.

Vox tensed and glared at Alastor

“Look, I may love him, that doesn’t mean I wanna die for him. Not everyone’s a ‘knight in shining armour’ like your fucking cat,” He grumbled, turning his attention back to Valentino’s phone “Besides, maybe I’m gettin’ sick of his fuckin’ drama.”

Alastor sat back down and cocked an eyebrow before glancing over at the ensuite door, where Valentino was now standing.

“You love me?”

Vox visibly stiffened before turning around. Alastor looked between the two of them. Valentino’s cheek was cut, so Vox had clearly struck him at some point in the bathroom, but other than that he seemed fine. Husk looked steamed though as he led Valentino to the bed for him to sit down. Alastor found he wasn’t overly thrilled with the cut either. Valentino was a horrible being, but in his current state, he couldn’t really defend himself. Not from an Overlord. Plus, Alastor didn’t think what he did warranted getting hit.

“So you’re just gonna ignore everything else that I said?” Vox scoffed and turned his attention back to his phone.

Valentino lowered his gaze

"Everything else is old news," He mumbled "But you've never said that you love me before."

Alastor couldn't help but think that was a little sad. In almost the entire time he'd known the two of them, they'd been together in some form or another. So this being the first time Vox had said that out loud… It really spoke volumes of their relationship. 

Vox snarled softly, the background of his screen turning pink

"Oh, shut up," He grumbled.

And Valentino did. Just snapped his mouth shut and curled in on himself a bit, sighing softly in defeat. It was actually a bit painful to watch how far he'd fallen. Alastor found it made his revenge taste a bit… Bitter. But that wasn't going to stop him, there was a bigger picture here, and Valentino was just a means to an end.

Husk just glared at Vox before sitting next to Valentino and awkwardly trying to comfort him. But nothing seemed to work. Vox cleared his throat and shoved Valentino's phone in his pocket

"Alright, Val, get dressed and we'll get going. No sense in wasting time and just getting that thing more pissed off," He grumbled.

Valentino tensed and gave Vox a desperately pleading look. It was clear he didn't want to face this alone. Alastor wondered briefly if that's what triggered his suicide attempt. But Vox didn't budge, just headed for the door

"I'll be waiting for you," He muttered.

Valentino slumped and buried his face in his hands, starting to tremble again. Husk gently wrapped a wing around him and awkwardly patted his leg. He clearly didn't really know how to help, which was understandable, given the situation. Alastor couldn't really think of a way to comfort someone over being sent off to die a horrific, slow, humiliating death either. He took a deep breath and followed after Vox

"Don't you think you're being just a tad harsh?" He asked.

Vox froze and glared over his shoulder at Alastor

"What do you care? I thought you wanted him to suffer?" He scoffed.

Alastor clasped his hands behind his back

"Yes, but I have no desire to kick a wounded puppy, which you seem to derive enjoyment from," He sneered "Was it really necessary to strike him?"

Vox stiffened and he quickly averted his gaze

"Didn't I tell you to butt out of my relationship," He grumbled.

Alastor walked around him and teased his mic under Vox's 'chin', which quickly got him all flustered

"You'd really make him face a vicious, angry throne, weakened and alone?" He cooed.

Vox tensed up again and just glared weakly at Alastor. It was clear he knew he was doing a really scummy thing, but hey, if he were a decent person, he wouldn't be in Hell. Alastor replaced his mic with his free hand and just teased a finger along the edge of Vox's screen

"Think of how you'll feel once he's gone. How long you'll have to live without him," He breathed "It'll feel a lot longer still if you really do love him."

Vox averted his gaze and crossed his arms

"You ain't gonna manipulate me into going with him," He muttered.

Alastor reached up and playfully tugged on one of Vox's antennae, making him all flustered

"It'll be worse for him if he turns up alone, surely you must know that," He cooed "And Ahkazriel will probably find a way to show you exactly what you're missing."

Vox pulled away from Alastor and rubbed the back of his neck

"Fuck off!" He snapped "I ain't fuckin' doin' it, and I don't care if that makes me a horrible, irredeemable bastard! He ain't worth my fuckin' life!"

Alastor glanced over at Valentino, who was standing in the doorway. He looked hurt, but not particularly surprised.

"I'm ready… I guess," He mumbled "I'm dressed anyway. Although, I don't think it's going to care much about what I'm wearing…"

Vox flinched a bit at that but held his ground. Alastor spun his mic around in one hand

"Alrighty then," He chirped, turning on his heel and heading for the elevator "Shall we?"

Valentino reluctantly followed after him, Husk right behind him. Vox just weakly glared at the old cat before following after them as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will Vox come around and stop being a douche? Probably not, but we can always hope.


	27. Abel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angel Dust makes a decision regarding Arackniss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's pretty heavy. Just a warning.

Angel Dust had managed to pull Arackniss back over to their spot behind the crate, despite spending most of his time choking on blood. He felt cold, and light-headed. He was afraid he was going to bleed out. Hell, he  _ knew  _ he was going to bleed out. And that terrified him, because it meant Arackniss would be completely defenseless… Maybe reanimating  _ would  _ snap him out of it…

Angel spat out more blood and wobbled slightly. He was so dizzy. But he  _ had _ to try this. Tears welled up in his eyes as he wrapped his hands around Arackniss’ throat and squeezed. It took a moment before Arackniss instinctively grabbed at Angel’s wrists. It was sluggish, and there was very little fight behind it, which Angel was actually a little grateful for. If Arackniss had been able to  _ really  _ fight back, then Angel, in his woozy state, wouldn’t have been able to hold his grip. He stared into Arackniss’ eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks, just waiting for his pupils to dilate and his body to stop fighting.

Sure, they weren’t close, but that didn’t mean Angel wanted to  _ kill  _ him. He glanced over his shoulder at Ahkazriel. He had a nagging feeling it wouldn’t appreciate the death of its hostage. It was just staring at the screens. Angel turned his attention back to Arackniss and tensed. He’d slumped and his eyes had gone dark. Angel took a shaky breath, choking a bit on more blood and slowly released Arackniss’ throat, pulling him into a hug before settling down in the corner to die as well.

He wasn’t sure if Ahkazriel had been lying when it said Valentino had agreed or not, but either way, it would take about a week for them both to reanimate. Hopefully they’d be out of here by then. Angel flinched when Ahazriel’s wings fluttered and when he peeked out to check what was going on, it was gone. He blinked in confusion before gently resting Arackniss’ corpse on the ground and pushing himself to his feet. He was shaky, from blood loss and murdering his brother. He stumbled out of their sad little hiding place, having to hold the wall to stay upright, and looked around the room. His eyes locked on the only door and he sluggishly started stumbling towards it.

He collapsed against the door and desperately tried the handle. Locked. He screamed in frustration before completely falling to the ground. He was so dizzy and out of it. If he wanted any chance of getting out of here, he’d need to stop the bleeding… He needed something to make a fire… There was nothing around to make a fire.

Angel pushed himself up and crawled back over to Arackniss, lying down next to him. He stroked Arackniss’ cheek, tears welling up in his eyes again. He tried to apologize, but got stuck after ‘I’m’. He rolled over on his back and just stared up at the ceiling. Blood was pooling in the back of his throat and it was getting hard to breathe. A part of him wondered if he’d even reanimate at all… It had been an angel who’d ripped his tongue out after all… And then ate it, which had  _ not  _ been fun to watch. At all. He’d almost thrown up. Probably would have, had there been anything in his stomach. He blinked in confusion when a shadow appeared hovering over him… Right… Alastor’s shadow.

He tried as best he could to talk to it, but not much was understandable. The shadow looked between Angel and Arackniss. It seemed at a loss of what to do. Angel Dust could relate. He didn’t know what  _ could  _ be done. He felt no animosity towards Alastor, who probably had a thousand things on his mind, trying to get them free. He wished he could say that to the shadow, so Alastor knew that Angel didn’t blame him if he did end up dying.

The shadow curled up at Angel’s side, trembling. Almost like it was afraid. Angel wondered if it wouldn’t be able to hide in his own shadow if he died. Was that what it was afraid of?

“Go…” He slurred “Go… Home…”

It was  _ barely  _ understandable. The shadow sat up and looked down at Angel before looking towards the door. It looked back down at him and shook its head. Tears welled up in his eyes and he tried to beg, but only managed to choke on blood. He sat up and spat out a worrying amount of blood.

“Go… Home!” He yelled as best he could.

The shadow’s ears pinned back and it shook its head again. Angel spat blood at it. It didn’t seem to care. He picked Arackniss’ corpse up into his arms and curled up in the corner. He couldn’t tell the shadow that he was gonna die, and there was nothing they could do about it.

“Peahe… Go home.”

That was the best he could manage. The shadow shrunk away from him a bit. Angel didn’t understand why it wouldn’t just leave. There was nothing it could do now… Unless… Unless Ahkazriel  _ had  _ been telling the truth, and Valentino really was on his way… Alastor had probably convinced him, and  _ that’s  _ why his shadow wasn’t leaving. He nuzzled Arackniss’ cheek and closed his eyes. He was so cold. He just wanted to hurry up and die already. 

The shadow’s insides turned red and Angel sluggishly cocked an eyebrow in confusion. It suddenly looked around frantically before looking Angel Dust over and shifting closer to him

“ _ Angel… Goodness what happened? _ ” Alastor’s voice worried.

Angel’s eyes widened in shock

“Wha-?” He sputtered.

He couldn’t even say ‘Alastor’, but the shadow had certainly sounded like him.  _ Was  _ it Alastor, just… Possessing it?. The shadow got right up in his business, prying his mouth open to look inside. Yup,  _ definitely  _ Alastor.

“ _ Your tongue is gone! _ ” Alastor shrieked, quickly yanking the hands of his shadowy vessel away as some darkness shot out of them.

Angel averted his gaze 

“I’m ‘orry,” He whimpered before snuggling up to Arackniss’ corpse again “I’m ‘o’ go’a ma’e i’.”

‘Alastor’ squinted an eye in confusion for a moment before he picked up on what Angel was trying to say

“ _ Don’t say that, Angel. You’re going to be okay, _ ” He assured, voice crackling with static.

Angel’s expression sunk. He had a feeling that static meant Alastor couldn’t hold whatever he was doing for much longer. ‘Alastor’ closed his eyes and when they opened they were blue again. The shadow wobbled a bit before melting back into Angel’s shadow. Almost like it was tired. Angel couldn’t blame it… He was tired to… He hoped he’d reanimate. He hoped he’d be home if and when he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Angel Dust bleeds out. That's all I'm confirming at this point though.

**Author's Note:**

> Some of the things that happened during the five year time skip will come up, but they aren't super pertinent. But I will probably write a few one shots that go with this story.
> 
> I've also drawn some art to go with this story, let me know if you want to see it.
> 
> Please comment. Comments make me a happy writer, and happy writers write more.


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